


The Eternal Love

by Mellowyellowdiamonds



Category: Arrow (TV 2012)
Genre: Accidental Drug Use, Arranged Marriage, Canon-Typical Violence, Consensual sex under the influence, F/M, Fluff and Smut, a LOA comedy, a tad explicit in chapter 5, cheerful happy silly LOA story, enemies (sort of) to lovers, fluffy silliness that is not very plotty, silly Olicity scenarios, silly smut
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-07-17
Updated: 2018-08-31
Packaged: 2019-06-12 01:01:09
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 7
Words: 44,323
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15328269
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Mellowyellowdiamonds/pseuds/Mellowyellowdiamonds
Summary: Forced into a loveless marriage to Al Sah Him by her ageing and clearly looney adopted father Ra's Al Ghul, Felicity Smoak tries her best to plot her way out of this "terrible" marriage in a bid to regain her freedom. Her husband however has other ideas and is determined to foil her plans every step of the way.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> So I was watching the Chinese series "The Eternal Love" and there was SO much cute stuff that happened between the bickering OTP, I could not resist stealing some of those ideas and Olicitising them.
> 
> This story will be light on plot and is mainly to showcase Olicity in a bunch of cute/silly situations that I lifted from the series.
> 
> After such a bleak season I am in the mood for some silliness! 
> 
> I apologise if the characters are OOC. I try my best but it is hard to Olicitise things while remaining as true to canon personalities as possible as in canon they have miserable lives. If you want 100% accurate characterisation this story is probably not for you! 
> 
> Ra's in particular is pretty OOC but my defence is that I have magnified the Olicity shipping side of him!

_Why is nothing in my life ever simple_ Felicity ponders to herself as she sprints through the crowded nightclub, thanking her lucky stars she had opted for only moderately high heels tonight because she was a grown up now and adulting like a champ. She had her life in order, even landed a graduate position. She was well on her way to making wise decisions. Comfort over vanity.

Zipping through the corridor and making her way out the back Felicity realized that her chances of outrunning her pursuers were rather slim. Still she was a believer in pursuing her goals with all her vigor and mite because you really had to be in it to win it. Until she was caught, even in this brief moment of running through a dank alley, Felicity still had her freedom.

“Hello Baby Sister,” Nyssa’s voice greets her as Felicity almost careens into the warrior woman. Nyssa calmly catches Felicity and steadies her, before gracing her with a victorious smile.

“Don’t call me that,” Felicity scowls as she breaths heavily and clutches at her sides. Their father’s minions had caught up in the meantime and were lined up in a neat row behind her, looking at her warily as if they expected her to pull out some undesirable trick at any given moment. So she may have thrown a smoke grenade or itching powder at them a few times before. They really were such a humourless lot. Smoke grenades were nothing for a bunch of stealth assassins.

“Why did he send you this time Nyssa? Why all the theatrics? I was expecting him to pop up in my living room when I get home tonight to give me a lecture. Or have them haul me to him at a fancy hotel when they eventually catch me.” 

“Your movement and ability to evade has improved tremendously. This is the longest you’ve managed to evade capture by Father’s men,” Nyssa ignores her questions. She does however bestow Felicity with a pleased looking smile as she examines her form. Nyssa had a soft spot for Felicity. Well as close to a soft spot as was possible for someone like Nyssa. 

“I’ve been working out,” Felicity beams at her adopted sister cheerfully. “I’m up to 25 sit ups a day now. Even bought myself one of those fitness monitors. I am so thrilled that you noticed! Good of you to come out and see me Big Sister. You want to go for a late night snack or something? I know this great burger chain. They make the best burgers and shakes. Why don’t you wait for me to get into my car and change into some sneakers I have stashed away in there and then I’ll come back and we can go to Big Belly Burger together.” Felicity inches herself away from Nyssa in an almost cartoonish manner before the other woman’s hand stretches out and yanks her back.

“Nice try Baby Sister. Father wants you to come home. This is why he has not visited you himself. He has sent me with the jet to ensure that everything is to your liking. Father has even procured a cute little donkey for you to ride to the palace once we land in Nanda Parbat as he predicts that you will detest trekking on the terrain.” Seeing Felicity starting to fidget, Nyssa tightens her grip and rolls her eyes at her little sister. “I know about the smoke grenades in your pocket. Do not for one moment even consider that they will work on me. You really ought to put more effort into developing a weapon besides the one that is your namesake Baby Sister.” Nyssa is now firmly holding onto the back of Felicity’s dress, the way one would hold a naughty puppy by the scruff. 

“What do you mean he wants me to come home? I’ve got a graduate position with Kord Industries! He knows this! He was all smiles at my graduation, telling me how proud of me he was and how he was glad that he let me go to MIT. He never said anything about me having to come home. I can’t just go back to Nanda Parbat! I have a job! My reputation in the employment market will be sullied if I suddenly ghost Kord Industries.” 

A feeling of panic began to slowly take over. Things were different this time. Ra’s had always liked to lecture and give her long speeches but he had never sent someone else to bring her home before. Over the years he’d sent countless messages ordering her to go home, messages Felicity would ignore. He’d send men whom she would stealthily evade until they caught her or until Ra’s himself would make an appearance to chastise her. Felicity had never failed to convince him to let her stay wherever she was situated whether it was the exclusive boarding school he let her attend or MIT when she had skipped a couple of grades and found herself eligible for college early.

“Father has recently announced that there will be some meaningful changes within the League and he wants you to be there when he addresses every individual about their position within the League.”

“But I’ve never had a position within the League,” Felicity says in dismay. “I’ve never had any political involvement in the League and everything is to pass down to you or Talia one day. That’s why I begged him to let me have an education so I can make my own living and he won’t need to worry about me when he decides to give up being Ra’s Al Ghul.” 

“Father wants you home,” Nyssa says firmly. “Baby Sister you should know that no one ever really has a separate life from the League. Father has spoilt you and dare I say it failed to prepare you for the realities of life as a member of the League of Assassins. You will need to come back. This is not up for negotiation.”

“Nyssa I only lived in Nanda Parbat for two years and then I went to boarding school and never came back. I have no life within the league. I will always be grateful to Father for everything he has done for me and heck I’ll even have a spare room for him to visit me whenever he wants but I don’t see why any decision he makes about the League has any impact on me at all.”

“Do not be ungrateful Felicity Smoak,” Nyssa narrows her eyes and addresses Felicity sternly. “Father adores you and considers you every bit his real child much to Talia’s disgust and discontent. You will return and listen to what Father has to say.”

“You’re missing the point Nyssa.” Felicity feels like tugging at her hair in frustration. “I just said I’d have a spare room for him to stay whenever he wants to visit. Heck I’ll even take leave and come visit him for Christmas if that’s what he wants. I just don’t want to be embroiled in whatever League business he’s got cooking. You said so yourself that Talia is pissed. Can you imagine how angry the rest of his high ranking minions will be when they find out that he’s trying to involve the adopted daughter who has no claim to any position in the League by blood.” 

“That is where you are wrong Baby Sister. Father has never considered the bond by blood to be important. That is why he dotes over you. It is also why Al Sah Him will ascend to…” Nyssa stops suddenly realizing she has said too much. 

“Al Sah who?” Felicity asks, peering at her adopted sister curiously. “You know what, I don’t care. How long do I need to be back for? I’m going to contact Kord Industries and tell them I have a family crisis. It’s going to make a horrible impression but hopefully they’ll keep the position open for me.”

“Father did not say how long he wishes for you to remain in Nanda Parbat,” Nyssa answers once again, adopting her trademark slightly scary, albeit neutral expression.

“I’ll tell Kord Industries it’s a fortnight. Whatever announcements Father makes he surely won’t need me to stay there for longer. It’s not like he’s going to send me on a stealth assassin mission when he’s got the rest of you guys.” Felicity feels significantly more positive about the development. On the bright side she hadn’t been back to Nanda Parbat in almost a decade. She should treat this like a chance to travel and immerse herself in another culture, albeit a peculiar one that bore great resemblance to an ancient time monarchy. 

***

“Felicity you are as beautiful as you are clever my darling,” Ra’s beams proudly at his adopted daughter. He was very fond and proud of the unruly-orphaned little girl he had taken in when she was seven. Felicity who did not live the majority of her life with the League was not bound by it’s conventions or traditions, making her a rather free spirit, often saying and doing whatever she wanted, causing a great deal of mayhem and many a headache for the ruler of some of the world’s most lethal warriors. Ironically it was for these very reasons that she was his favourite child. Felicity did everything in earnest and exuded a warmth that was severely lacking in his life, in all their lives. From the moment he’d saved her from HIVE, Ra’s had been dazzled by this little girl. It was the main reason why he had let her live a modern and separate life to the rest of the League.

“Only you think I’m beautiful Father. Two years on campus and no one has ever even asked me out. I even decided to take the bull by the horns and asked out a few boys myself but they all just freaked out and ran off. I wonder why that could be.” Felicity smiles innocently at her adopted father. They both knew that as “free” as Felicity appeared his minions had been watching over her, her entire life and it was no coincidence that at nineteen going on twenty she’d never had a relationship with anyone of the opposite gender. Felicity had decided not to kick up a fuss in relation to this. Father paid for most of her schooling (the lion’s share was funded through all the scholarships she was able to win), her accommodation and provided her with a generous allowance. She’d been completely focused on her studies and when she started her masters she simply did not have the time to quibble about the boys that the League chased away. Felicity had always planned to tackle her father’s over protectiveness when she finished her studies and became a fully-fledged adult in the real world. College boys were also not particularly impressive.

“Perhaps it was your terrible wardrobe choices that drove them away my dear. Did you not live in old boots, shorts and rags a few years ago? Even someone as pretty as you could not rise above looking like you did not wash your hair for months my darling.”

“Oh don’t be mean Father,” Felicity lets out a chuckle as the memories of her former Goth self, dining with her father flashed through her head. To his credit Father had not said a word directly about her questionable wardrobe choices. He had merely asked her if she needed a raise in allowance to afford a more clothes. Felicity stifled a giggle as she recalled overhearing the phone call he made to Nyssa asking whether Nyssa thought her baby sister had been possessed by a demon as Felicity was now walking around looking like one. 

Felicity slips her arm through Ra’s’ and leads him to an opulent looking chair, adorned with velvet and gilded with what looked suspiciously like real 24 carat gold. Really the furniture in this place was fantastic. Perhaps she could sweet-talk him into letting her pilfer some furniture for her place in Starling City. “So can you tell me why you insisted I come back here Father instead of visiting me like you normally do. Or do you need to make a formal announcement with everyone present?” 

Ra’s gives her hand a pat and smiles at her fondly. “I can tell you now my dear before the formal announcement is made. It is not the traditional way of the League for me to tell you the news personally but you have never been my ordinary child. I am hoping this will allow you to ask any questions you may have and I hope you will understand why I have made this decision. I’ve grappled with this decision for many years and it was not made lightly my dear.”

“This is sounding frakking ominous Father,” Felicity responds looking at him suspiciously.

***

“You’re going to marry me off to an assassin?” Felicity repeats herself as if repeating the same sentence over and over again will somehow make it less horrifying and nonsensical than it sounded. Because to her disbelieving ears it sounded like the man who had always been kind to her was going to force her to marry his right hand man. Some lethal assassin her father had picked to become the next Ra’s because he decided he was sick of this gig and was going to retire somewhere with his 5 concubines.

“He is not just an assassin Felicity. He is a warrior. One of my best men. He’s upstanding, courageous and self-sacrificing. Once he loves you he will use his last breath to defend you and care for you.” Ra’s tells her these things as if they are meant to appease her. Clearly her father was very sold on this fellow and probably had a man crush on this guy himself.

“But he doesn’t love me and I don’t need anyone to take care of me,” Felicity protests in dismay. “No one has ever tried to kill me before either! I don’t see why you’ve suddenly decided I need a lethal bodyguard for life. How many wives is he going to have? You’re telling me that instead of letting me live my own life, you’re going to force me to join some assassin’s harem? I will not do this father! I WILL NOT throw my life away and be trapped here for the rest of my days in a loveless marriage with someone I have never met before.”

“Al Sah Him has had his fair share of women in his youth but he has changed greatly in the last couple of years Felicity. It is my wish that you will learn to love each other and live happily ever after.” Her father actually looks earnest like he believes everything he is spouting. Clearly in his mind he’d gone out of his way to set up what he thought was the best outcome for her.

Felicity stays silent and observes him a little closer. His hair is greyer and suddenly she realizes he looks like he’s aged. She wasn’t sure how old he was exactly (he’d always looked old to her yet never grew older in her eyes) but clearly the Lazarus Pit was no longer working for him. So this was why he was planning to retire. Probably gone a bit mad too in the process. She’d always suspected it wasn’t healthy to cheat death and time constantly. Felicity believed that there was a price for everything and Ra’s was paying for his centuries of long life by going loony tunes at this junction. It was the only thing to explain this terrible marriage he seemed so pleased about.

“So you’re telling me you think he’s a repentant man slut? That just makes everything so much better.” She’s pacing up and down now, her mind working furiously, running through each and every scenario to see how she could get out of this mess.

“You know what Father I am disappointed in you. I thought you were better than this, that you were fair and that you loved us. This is totally sexist of you! You have two biological children, two women who are kick ass warriors that you can leave your legacy to but you decide to leave it to a strange male of no relation and marry your third child to this guy.” Felicity tears up as she looks at her father, the disappointment evident in her eyes. To his credit Ra’s appears a little crest fallen, as if he were considering that he might have made a mistake.

“You trained Talia and Nyssa to fight, to be leaders. You saved me, realized that I was never going to be a fighter in the way of the League but yet you managed to focus on the things I was good at and gave me the chance to pursue my dreams. And now you’re going to collectively rip all our hopes and dreams away from us. I don’t understand it. What was the point of all this, of our lives if you were never going to let the other two rule or let me put my brains and education to good use?”

“You judge your poor old father too hastily Felicity.” He has the gall to look sad right now, like she’d thrown all his love back in his face. Felicity, despite feeling a tiny bit sorry for how sad her father looks, gives him an irritated huff.

“I have spent the last decade watching your sisters. Talia has questionable ethics and Nyssa…I do not trust Nyssa to have the same devotion to keep you safe.”

“What is this obsession with keeping me safe suddenly,” Felicity throws her arms in the air out of frustration. “I have never been unsafe. Why is my safety suddenly such a huge issue to the point where you’ve changed your succession plans?”

“The minute I give up being Ra’s Al Ghul, all my old foes will descend upon me and those that I love. This is the way things are and have always been. My life centres around the League. Everyone in it is involved in the League and everyone has the means and connections to protect themselves. Everyone except you. Although I adopted you and see you as my own child, you have not grown up here and forged the connections or relationships. You are all on your own Felicity and I am afraid you will be the easiest and most obvious target as my favourite child.”

“So as your last act before you retire, you are going to force your heir to marry me? This reads like some fantasy ancient day novel Father!” Felicity turns and gives him her most winning smile, something that has always worked for her when she was a child. “What if I move to say…Ohio or something and change my name? No one will ever know I was your kid. You can visit me and pretend you’re a…peach farmer or something? We can do away with this drastic marriage plan you have going on? Pleeeeeeeeease Father? You keep saying I’m your favorite child, you wouldn’t want me to be incredibly unhappy with an ex man slut who doesn’t even want me now would you?”

“I have made up my mind in this matter. There is nothing further to discuss Felicity. Nothing you say or do will convince me that I am wrong in what I have decided. I have picked the best candidate in matrimony for you. Al Sah Him is handsome, courageous and a true gentleman. You will not find a better match elsewhere.” Ra’s tone is firm with no room for negotiation and Felicity realizes he’s shut the door on any further debate in the matter.

“He’s an assassin Father! Someone who kills as a way of life.”

“So are we all Felicity. Do not forget where you came from. You may have gone to a fancy college with your fancy scholarship and fancy degrees but do not forget that it was the League that saved you and gave you such opportunities. I am not asking for repayment, merely that you heed my orders and respect that I have done everything I could to ensure you your very best future and happiness.”

“You did Father. There was a time when you did love me and did care about my happiness. That was when you let me have my own life and respected my choices. Now you’re taking everything away from me under some misguided notion of love. You’re doing this because you think you know better. Because I’m just on the cusp of entering the real world and you can’t bear to let me grow up and muddle it out on my own. I will NEVER forgive you for this, for destroying my life.” Felicity unable to control her emotions any longer bursts into tears and storms out of the room. 

***

“She is not going to go down without a fight father,” Nyssa walks up quietly and stands next to her father by the large window, as they both watch Felicity storm angrily across the palace courtyard. “Shall I send Sara or Thea to keep an eye on her?”

“Leave her be. Let her have her time to process this news and plan whatever rebellion or escape she likes. Felicity will not accept her fate without a fight and I expect no less from her. I would like her to feel that she took every chance to fight back. It will help her accept her fate better knowing that she did her best to prevent it.” Ra’s prided himself in the fact that even though Felicity lived away from him for many years, he still understood and knew his third child better than almost anyone. 

“Does it have to be her fate father? I know you are afraid your enemies will come after her and any family she builds one day but upon my life I swear father that I will protect her. Even when Al Sah Him ascends to Ra’s I will protect Felicity.” If anyone were to accuse Nyssa of making this statement she would deny it vehemently however between her and Father there was no shame in admitting to the soft spot they both had for the baby of the family.

“I believe your words Nyssa. Just like I think there is always a chance that my enemies will not come for her. But why does she need to wallow in the ordinary when she can be great? What good will it do her really if I were to let her live the life she’s chosen in Starling? She will work in some mundane job that does not utilize her talent or skills. She will meet some ordinary boy, think she’s fallen in love, end the relationship and then go through a line of ordinary boys until she finds one that is tolerable enough for her to spend the rest of her days with? Your sister can be so much more than that. She can have so much more than that. Al Sah Him is the one for her. Over the last few years I have decided there is no one better suited or worthy of my beloved child than Al Sah Him. They are a match made in heaven whether they know it or not.” 

There was no denying that Ra’s was completely and utterly invested in this potential relationship. Just like one of those enthusiastic western shippers she’s read about Nyssa notes to herself. Who would have thought her father would spend his winter years shipping his second in command and his favourite child. Nyssa truly felt for her baby sister’s plight although a secret shameful little voice in her heart did agree with Father that Al Sah Him and Felicity would make a beautiful couple.

***

It was easy. Almost too easy Felicity thinks to herself. No one had followed her, no bodyguards had been sent to watch her. After her little tantrum with her father she had been left to her own devices and the only thing her father did was send a large blueberry pie to her room after dinner.

Felicity was acutely aware that there were probably ten stealth assassins secretly watching her to see how far she would get. Said assassins will probably laugh there heads off at her. Still it was not her way to give up so easily. If they wanted her to marry this Al Sah Him fellow they were going to have to drag her utterly defeated, kicking and screaming to the alter. 

She could never forgive herself if she simply gave up and rolled over. This was why she was currently scaling a fifty-foot wall. Once she got over this wall Felicity hoped that she could trek into town and hitch a ride to the closest commercial airport where she would use the cash she had in her backpack to book a flight home. Her real new home in Starling.

With her arms throbbing and a few close call slips along the way, Felicity managed to haul herself to the top of the wall only to be greeted by what looked like a huge drop down. Hmm clearly she hadn’t thought this through. Climbing the wall had been no piece of cake but getting down on the other side was obviously going to be a problem. It wasn’t like she could just jump down. Nyssa probably could. The assassins probably knew some kind of cat like roll or something that allowed them to land a fifty-foot jump without a scratch. She was just going to break her neck.

Fortunately luck was on her side. There appeared to be a sturdy looking tarp-like roof just a few feet from where she was perched. If she could haul herself over, jump and land on the tarp she would be as badass as any of the assassins. Felicity would never admit to it but sometimes she practiced fake assassins moves for fun, especially after an interaction with Nyssa. She’d rather die than tell anyone (especially Nyssa) about this.

Well she was Ra’s Al Ghul’s adopted daughter and he had sent someone to give her self defence lessons over the years. Maybe she also picked up some mad skills via osmosis. The worse thing that could happen after landing badly on that tarp was a few broken bones. That would surely delay the wedding. It was all looking up from here onwards.

Shuffling gingerly a few feet over so that she was positioned directly above the tarp, Felicity gulped and jumped, tucking in her knees like she had been taught, holding her tuck until she approached the tarp where she opened her legs and pushed herself into a roll. Unfortunately for Felicity she lost control of her movements pretty fast and before she had time to repent for her terrible decision-making, she found herself rolling off the tarp, heading straight for the hard ground. 

***

Oliver could not pin point why the prospect of marrying Ra’s’ daughter set him on edge. He’d never met the girl and Ra’s himself had informed him that Felicity Smoak was as different to his other daughters as chalk and cheese. Oliver didn’t know what to think of this statement. He was certainly not attracted to Talia or Nyssa although he respected them as fighters. 

The third daughter was a mysterious being, the apple of Ra’s’ eye. For years he had wondered if she were some sort of myth Ra’s concocted from his imagination (Oliver wouldn’t put it past Ra’s to make such a thing up after all those years in the Lazarus Pit) as Oliver found it hard to believe that Ra’s would allow any child of his, even an adopted one, to live away from the League for a decade. Still Nyssa often spoke about “Baby Sister” and Nyssa was much to straight forward to be unstable. 

Felicity Smoak. Her name did have a nice ring to it even if he wanted nothing to do with the girl. From what he’d been told about the girl Oliver gathered she was young, inexperienced and spoilt. As harsh and unyielding as Ra’s was on everyone, he’d saved the human side of him to dote on this one child. For a moment Oliver felt sorry for Felicity Smoak. She must have had the rugged pulled from under her. To have so many years of freedom and now be trapped here forced into a loveless marriage with a man she did not know. Oliver let out an audible sigh. He would try to be nice to the girl regardless of his distaste for this marriage. Perhaps between the two of them they could come to some sort of agreement that would be beneficial to both without incurring Ra’s’ wrath.

Oliver was lost in his thoughts when he heard an almighty screech from high above him as a figure in pink came hurtling down one of the gazebo roofs. Acting purely on instinct Oliver ran forward and held out his arms, neatly catching the screaming pink clad bundle, which immediately stopped screaming upon landing in his arms bridal style.

The bundle wriggled for a few seconds, both hands covering her face. Oliver found himself grinning as a bright, long lashed, pair of blue eyes peered cautiously out from under the hands. 

“Wow…that was umm very impressive. I didn’t think I was going to die but I did think a few broken limbs were inevitable. Not that I minded a few broken limbs you know since I am to be married off to this terrible guy. Well actually I’ve no idea if he’s that terrible. Certainly has a man slut reputation but one can be a man slut and not kick puppies if you know what I mean. I was hoping a few broken bones would delay the marriage. Not that I mean to appear ungrateful. I’m sure you caught me with the best of intentions but a few minor broken bones would have been helpful to me at this point in time.” She pauses for a few seconds to get a good look at him, sizing him up and down before smiling at him appreciatively.

“You are very strong. And handsome. Forgive me for being so blunt but since I may never get to interact with a man as a single woman again I will just say anything that comes to mind. Not that I am hitting on you. I’m just enjoying the handsome view and how gallant you were catching me from midair. You’re an assassin I take it? No one normal has moves like that.” 

Oliver finds himself beaming as the girl in question rambles on, her hands now fully removed from her face as she gesticulated wildly while obliviously still perched in his arms. So this was Ra’s’ beloved Felicity. Oliver’s soon to be wife Felicity. And she was adorable. Loose blonde curls. Pouty pink lips, askew black rimmed glasses and a voice that was as bright and sunny as everything about her. 

“You’re…you’re Al Sah Him’s future wife?” he asks her, feigning surprise.

“Not if I can help it. No one is going to force me into a loveless marriage. I’m not even sure I want a loving marriage! I’m 19 how the hell would I even know what love is?” she mutters darkly before something takes over her thoughts and he finds her beaming sunnily at him. “Say you wouldn’t be able to dislocate my shoulder for me would you? And maybe a thumb? I can do it myself, well the thumb, but I am squeamish about such things.”

“How will that help you get out of the marriage?” Oliver secures his grip on her and starts walking towards the main palace. “They’d know it was just dislocated and adjust them back into their sockets.”

“Yes but the drama of it would be enough to make my father delay the wedding. For all his crazy ways he does love me and he would not make me go through with a wedding after I have dislocated a few limbs. Please? I need to buy some time.” She flashes him another charming smile, those blue eyes looking at him coaxingly. Oliver takes a deep breath. If this was what a naive Felicity Smoak was like he was in trouble. She seemed to know perfectly well the effect she was having on him. 

“I’m sorry Miss but I cannot hurt you. It would be an offence punishable by death should anyone find out.”

“Oh who’s gonna tell,” she huffs in frustration, wriggling crossly as she tries to climb down from his arms.

Oliver deposits her safely on the ground and places a hand gently on her shoulder.

“Hey calm down. I can’t dislocate your limbs but I do have some information you might find useful.” 

At once her disgruntled look vanishes and Felicity perks up with interest, those damn mesmerizing blue eyes gazing at him again. This marriage may just kill him and not in the ways he thought it would either. Life was full of surprises sometimes. Perhaps Ra’s with all his crazy did have a point in all of this. 

“Al Sah Him is a decorated warrior, your father’s right hand man. When he defeated Malcolm Merlyn, someone your father has been trying to dispose of for a long time, Ra’s gave him an Imperial Gold token. The token allows Al Sah Him or anyone he gifts the token to, to make one decision over ruling Ra’s’. If you were to convince Al Sah Him to give you that token, you could use it to free yourself from this marriage.” 

“Why would Al Sah Him give me this super valuable token when he doesn’t even know me or give a flying frak about me? And who’s to say my father won’t just go back on his word. You should know my father’s word is the law. He doesn’t have to honor anything he doesn’t want to.” 

“The token has a rich history within the League and has been passed down from generations by all previous rulers. To dishonor its value and meaning, what it represents, is to fly in the face of centuries of League tradition. Your father would never do that.” He gives her shoulder a reassuring squeeze. 

“Well that doesn’t solve the problem of why Al Sah Him would decide to give it to me?” Felicity furrows her eyebrows, looking adorably dejected before breaking into a huge smile again. “Unless he wants to continue to be a man slut and wants out of this marriage as much as I do! Yes! He’s not going to want to deal with some dull virgin if he’s a man slut. Not that I am dull! A virgin yes but most definitely not dull. In bed I mean. At least I don’t think I would be. I’ve done an awful lot of research about it.” Seeing Oliver’s eyes widen in shock, Felicity gives him an apologetic look. “Too much information huh?”

Oliver bites his tongue and resists the urge to ask her what kind of research she had done exactly. 

“Even if he didn’t want out of the marriage I am sure you can charm him into giving you that token somehow.” He takes a step closer to her and gently tugs on a curl, letting it spring back before adding, “If my impression of you is anything to go by I don’t think you’ll have any trouble bending Al Sah Him to your will.”

“I’ll give it a go I guess. Can always try to run again if it all goes to hell.”

“I promise I will help you if you really want an out. But you never know. Life works in mysterious ways. Al Sah Him is a great warrior. You might fall in love and be happy in this match.” Oliver couldn’t resist making the comment because despite being against the marriage at the beginning he now found himself doing a compete 180 in relation to the situation. There was a lot to like about Felicity Smoak. There was a lot he wanted to discover. Marriage might be extreme but he now couldn’t help feeling blessed that Ra’s had arranged this.

“The more everyone extols this guy’s supposed virtues the more I find myself disliking him,” Felicity mutters darkly. “Thank you for the information you provided about the token. I’ve tried escaping and that hasn’t been a rousing success so I suppose it won’t hurt to change tactics.”

She stops abruptly and throws her petite arms around his waist, giving him a fierce, impassioned hug. “Thank you. I feel like you’re the only friend I have in this place.” Felicity looks up at his shocked face and gazes at him for a few seconds, bouncing nervously on her feet a little. Before Oliver could return her hug she stands up on her tippy toes, grabs his face with both hands and pulls him towards her for a heated kiss. Oliver’s eyes widen in shock at first but he submits to her soft lips which were devouring his gloriously, her hand now winding it’s way to the back of his head, carding his close cut hair. 

“Sorry for launching at you like that but I wanted my first kiss to be on my terms,” she sighs at him breathlessly as she pulls away from the kiss, pressing their foreheads together. Oliver, craving more, wraps an arm around her waist and pulls her back into him for another heady kiss.

“I really have to go now,” Felicity whispers. “I don’t want to get you into trouble in my account. Good bye…err…”

“Oliver…Oliver Queen,” he supplies helpfully. Somehow he didn’t think she was going to ask around about Oliver Queen.

“Good bye Oliver. Thank you for being here for me today.”

“We might meet again.” 

“I doubt it…and if we do meet again here, I’ll be married to Al Sah Him.” There was a tinge of sadness in her voice that made Oliver feel guilty for deceiving her. 

“I wish you all the best Felicity.” He bends down to kiss her again, a soft lingering kiss that she leans into for a few seconds, making delightful whimpering noises before pulling away.

“It was lovely meeting you.” Felicity smiles a beautiful sad smile before she turns and walks away. 

 


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Awwww guys!!!! Thank you so much for all your kudos and lovely comments on chapter one!!!! I was seriously only expecting my 10 faithful regulars to read it! 
> 
> Squeeeeee
> 
> *huggles*
> 
> Anyways it has been an awesome week of Chinese series watching for me which just put me in such a silly shippy mood so here is your update! I am also almost done with chapter 3 although I did need to increase the story to 5 chapters!
> 
> Once again all my usual disclaimers regarding OOC-ness. 
> 
> I hope you enjoy this one! I had great fun writing it!

“So is he hot?” Felicity whispers to Nyssa who was seated on her right hand side. To the left, on Felicity’s other side was their father, looking thoroughly annoyed as he exchanged words quietly with Talia. 

“It is my understanding that he often finds the climate in Nanda Parbat warm during training if that is what you mean by hot,” Nyssa replies serenely.

“Oh stop that Nyssa! You know perfectly well what I mean. Don’t think that I don’t know you watch more Western TV than anyone in this place,” Felicity scolds her sister playfully.

“I do not find him attractive if that is the answer you are seeking.” Nyssa was feeling pleased. Pleased enough to tap into the sense of humour she possessed but rarely showed the world. There was a sense of relief in seeing that Felicity had calmed down somewhat after her attempt to escape. Perhaps all that physical exertion from scaling the wall had done her sister some good. She was much less petulant about the match now and had not thrown a single tantrum since she stormed away from their father the other day.

“You don’t find any males attractive. You know what I don’t care anymore. To be a man slut I suppose he must look semi decent. Is he nice?” Felicity whispers her next question suddenly feeling a rush of adrenaline surging through her. Much of her success in getting out of this marriage depended on whether Al Sah Him was a decent person or not. At the very least she hoped he had an amiable temperament.

“Don’t call your future husband such crude names Baby Sister. It is my understanding that he is very much reformed from his previous love of promiscuity. Father would not have ordered the marriage otherwise.”

“Yes yes but is he evil? Would he kick a puppy?” Felicity didn’t know whether Nyssa was being evasive on purpose or just her usual self. You never really could tell with Nyssa sometimes. She had a peculiar sense of humour and Felicity often had trouble deciphering whether she was joking or dead serious. She had the exact same expression in regards to both.

“In answer to your question Baby Sister, Al Sah Him is a warrior who has slayed many enemies but I do not believe he has ever harmed a small animal.”

“I’m not sure what to make of that statement Nyssa,” Felicity sighs shaking her head in frustration.

“Do not worry yourself dear Baby Sister. I have a wedding gift for you that will come in handy to ward off any unwanted affections from your future husband even though I do not think you will require it.” Nyssa pats Felicity’s arm affectionately as Felicity gives her a startled look.

Ra’s, having ended his conversation with Talia and noticing Felicity’s somewhat distraught look turns and addresses his daughter fondly. “I may have issued a decree for this marriage to take place but it does not mean you are his property my dear. You will always be my beloved child and will be treated as such no matter whom you marry. There is nothing for you to fear Felicity.”

“I wish I found any of this remotely comforting Father but I do not,” Felicity scowls at Ra’s. “Why are you making me sit up here with you anyway? Isn’t that just bringing more attention to me? You really should have just let me live the anonymous suburban life I planned for myself.”

“There there, don’t be like that darling. Al Sah Him is about to meet you for the first time. Try to give him a chance Felicity,” Ra’s coaxes her in such a good natured and gentle tone, Felicity finds herself wondering once again why the father who loved her so much could make the decision to sign her life away. He really must be going mad. There was no other plausible explanation for it.

“Summon him in,” Ra’s orders as Felicity waits anxiously to meet the man whom she must convince to cooperate with her.

To her surprise there is no Al Sah Him to be found but rather a solemn looking Oliver marching in, looking every bit as handsome and heroic as she remembers him. Those eyes, that jawline, the hard body that had held her. She wouldn’t have minded so much if her father had set her up with Oliver instead. He's got a lot of decoration on his robes in comparison to the other assassins she's seen around the palace. Felicity gathers he must be a fairly high-ranking individual. A feeling of relief washes over her. Maybe this Al Sah Him was not into this whole forced marriage thing either and had done a runner. Perhaps Oliver was here to announce the news; hence the serious look on his face. 

“Al Sah Him let me introduce you to your soon-to-be wife, my pride and joy. This is Felicity.” Ra’s stands up and smiles warmly extending a hand each to both Oliver and Felicity.

“Frak you’ve got to be kidding me,” Felicity mutters as she glares daggers at a now very crestfallen looking Oliver Queen. Or Al Sah Him as was his true identity.

*** 

Felicity did not know how she made it through the introductions without marching right over and kneeing Oliver Queen in the groin for lying to her. Those kisses, the sympathetic looks, catching and holding her like a hero, trying to talk up Al Sah Him in front of her. It was all a ploy! Oliver Queen, no Al Sah Him was a fraking lying liar. She hated lying liars. He could have told her who he was and they might have developed some rapport. Instead he pretended to be someone else and told her some bullshit story about a Golden Token leading her to hope there was a way out of this. 

As her anger simmered away Felicity could feel her cheeks heating up and flushing from the fire fury that was burning within her. The lying liar Al Sah Him had the nerve to look at her with the most stupid expression on his face as well. He was gazing at her with a half shy, half nervous but eager looking smile.

 _Just you wait buddy_ , Felicity thought violently to herself. _I’ll give you plenty to be nervous about for pulling a fast one on me. I am not my father's favourite child for nothing._

“If you don’t mind Father I would like a word with Al Sah Him. Get to know my future husband. I’m kinda freaking out about the wedding so it would make me feel much better if I got to know him a little first,” Felicity smiles charmingly at Ra’s who was too caught up in his relief that she hadn’t kicked up a stink to notice the fury in his daughter’s eyes.

“I cannot express enough how pleased I am you are trying to accept this marriage Felicity. One day you will thank me for it. I labored over the decision for many years and it was made with every consideration for your well being.” 

“I respect that Father and I do know that you love me in your own way. So I’m going suck it up and try my hardest to make it work. They always say marriage is hard work right? I will try my utmost best to get along with Al Sah Him. Rest assured Father should there be any unhappiness between us, it won’t be because I didn’t give it my all.” Felicity is all smiles as she says this, pouting a little to emphasize to father just how young she still was. Father would never suspect her of messing up big bad strong assassin Al Sah Him’s life now would he? 

Ra’s was a shrewd man, as one tends to be when one has lived for more than a century. However in the last few decades no one could charm him quite like Felicity did. Throughout the years when she had continuously evaded his men, caused minor nuisance injuries to them and refused all his orders to come home, Ra’s could never find it within himself to truly be angry at Felicity. She was so bright, bubbly and pure hearted, Ra’s found it easy to attribute everything she did to “youthful exuberance.”

He was also a man who valued success and although Felicity was not a fighter she was a certified genius, surpassing everyone in all things academic with the results to back it up. Felicity had blitzed her way through school and then MIT much to Ra’s delight. Although he refused to admit this to himself, it played a great role in propelling her to favoritism. Ra’s respected excellence, the ability to rise to the top and Felicity’s brain delivered just that. 

“I shall leave you young people to get to know one another. You are right my dear it is for the best as the wedding will be in three days.” He gives Felicity an affectionate kiss on the cheek and turns to nod sternly at Al Sah Him before marching out of the throne room with an unimpressed Talia and puzzled looking Nyssa who was doing her very best to maintain a disinterested face despite being insanely curious as to what Baby Sister was up to.

***

“YOU!!!!!” Felicity wags a finger angrily as she marches up to Oliver. “You LIED to me! You STOLE my first kiss!” She begins to slap him on the shoulder repeatedly, stopping after the third slap to wince in pain because hitting him was like hitting a slab of concrete. 

Wordlessly Oliver picks up her soft little hand, which was now red after three attempts to whack him and massages it, a concerned look on his face. “Your hand has gone all red. Does it hurt?”

“Don’t you try to pull the concerned, helpful, Mr. Nice Guy act on me,” Felicity snaps, yanking her hand away. “You lied to me! You stole my first kiss! That was my one act of freedom so I could feel like I kissed someone of my own free will before I got locked up in this sham of a marriage. What else did you lie to me about? I suppose that story about the token is fake too?” 

“Umm Felicity, you kissed me.” Suddenly finding his temporarily misplaced confidence Oliver is now grinning at her with an amused look on his face. 

“You kissed me back! Twice! You knew who I was and you kissed me back! You didn’t have to kiss me back. We had a full conversation before the kissing and you knew exactly who I was. You could have explained yourself and reassured me that you weren’t into this marriage either and we could have bonded about that but nooooooo. You lied, pretended you were someone else, told me some cock and bull story about a Golden Token and lured me into kissing you.” 

“Hey hey, calm down.” He places both hands gently on her shoulders and begins to stroke them. “I’m sorry I shouldn’t have lied to you. But I am not sorry about the kiss. I could never be sorry about the kiss.” He had the nerve to make puppy dog eyes at her. This guy was too much. Felicity continues to glare daggers at him but stands still to let him explain himself. 

“I didn’t completely lie. More like withheld the truth. My real name really is Oliver Queen and everything I said about the Golden Token is true.” He gives her shoulders a gentle squeeze and looks at her beseechingly. “Do you think you can forgive me and we can start over again?” 

Felicity eyes him suspiciously before holding out her palm. “Give it to me then. If everything you have said is true and you want to be friends, give me the Golden Token. Consider it an act of good faith. I promise we can be friends after I leave here. I’ll take you out drinking when you visit me in Starling.” 

“But…but you’re not legally allowed to drink,” Oliver mutters stupidly with a dumb confused look on his face.

“Cripes we are in the midst of a forced marriage and that’s what you’re focused on?” Felicity pokes him in the ribs to get him to focus and holds out her hand again. “Give me the token, let me get us out of this mess and I’ll be your friend. I promise I have ways we can go drinking together. I have the best hangover cure too.” 

“I…err…I can’t…” Oliver confesses looking completely bewildered now. “I’m sorry. I can’t.” He straightens his shoulders at the last two words, his previously stunned look now replaced by one of determination.

“Why ever not? You said you have the token.” It was Felicity’s turn to be perplexed at where this was headed.

“I…um…I think I want to marry you.” A pink blush slowly spreads across his face as Oliver gives her a sheepish smile. 

“Say what?” Felicity’s jaw drops. Did they all drink from the Lazarus Pit at this joint? Father had the excuse of being ancient but there really was no excuse for Oliver to join in the madness.

“I wasn’t keen on the marriage at first. I wasn’t going to oppose anything Ra’s ordered but I was dreading the prospect of marrying you as much as you dread marrying me.”

“Go on, you’re doing well! Dreading marrying me, knowing this marriage is a bad idea. Keep on that train of thought,” Felicity nods at him encouragingly as if to coax him along and eventually help him see common sense.

“Then you fell into my arms. You literally fell into my arms from the sky and you’re just so beautiful and funny and charming. This little bundle of sunshine fell right into my arms and I…um…well I want to get married now.” To her dismay Oliver clasps both of her hands and gazes at her earnestly as he continues. “I think it’s meant to be. I think everything that has happened is the universe leading us to each other.” 

“I fell because I was scaling a wall to run away,” Felicity exclaims in dismay. “I did not come from the sky! This is not a sign from the heavens! What is wrong with you people?” 

“But that kiss…you can’t deny you didn’t feel something during all our kisses. I haven’t been able to think of anything else. I can still taste you on my lips.” He had her there. Despite thinking she was going to marry someone else, Felicity had replayed those kisses back many times in her mind.

“You were a hot assassin who had just heroically caught me and I found you aesthetically pleasing,” Felicity shoots back, regrouping herself. “That does not mean it’s true love.”

“But it could be. We could give this a try. Ra’s has been alive for longer than any of us can imagine, he probably sees something we can’t see for ourselves.”

“Oh I think you’re seeing plenty. You sound like you’ve drunk Father’s kool aid in regards to this marriage.” 

Taking in a deep breath and exhaling Felicity holds out her hand one last time. “Are you going to give me the token or not?” 

“I’m sorry Felicity but I can’t. I really want to marry you. I…I love being around you. You make me feel something I’ve never felt before and I owe it to myself to explore that.” He’s looking so sincere and making heart eyes at her, those damn heart eyes, Felicity almost doesn’t have the will to shut him down. Almost being the operative word. 

“Be careful what you wish for Oliver,” Felicity tries to sound as ominous as possible but finding great difficulty as Oliver continues to gaze at her with a besotted smile on his face like she’s the most wonderful thing he’s ever seen. 

***

Although the wedding ceremony went smoothly, Oliver couldn’t help feeling apprehensive about what was to come. Despite the fact that the marriage had been ordered by Ra’s, he ultimately chose this by refusing to use the token to decline the marriage. 

Felicity swept through the ceremony graciously, bestowing magnificent smiles whenever Ra’s was within view. Vicious glares were saved for Oliver when she decided that no one was looking. Despite feeling slightly terrified by glares and threatening looks as they were a promise to enact some sort of revenge on him for lying to her and going ahead with the marriage, Oliver found that they in no way put him off.

He had never seen anyone so vividly adorable before and the fiercer Felicity looked, the more Oliver felt that he had made the correct decision. He responded by beaming at Felicity to show her how appealing he found her and that nothing could dampen his hope and investment in this union, although this seemed to infuriate her even more judging by the increase in frequency of the glares as the night wore on. 

Still there was a part of Oliver that was feeling jubilant. This was the start of a new chapter in his life.

“Al Sah Him I would like a few words before you return to your chambers,” Ra’s orders. The festivities were winding down. Nyssa had led felicity away to their wedding chambers and he was to follow soon after.

Oliver heeds Ra’s’ request and obediently follows him into the throne room where Ra’s promptly dismisses everyone. 

“I did not know what your true thoughts or intentions were when I first approached you with this marriage arrangement. You have always been my most trusted warrior and after observing you all these years I could tell that you were not pleased with the arrangement but duty compelled you to obey my orders.” Ra’s takes a few short paces, up and down, clearly gearing up for one of his famous monologues. 

“It appears that you are now quite taken with Felicity. I can see it in your eyes. You are greatly attracted to my daughter.”

“My lord…I…uh…” Oliver wasn’t quite sure how to respond. Ra’s despite being the mastermind behind this whole marriage was now eyeing Oliver warily, clearly about to issue some sort of threat.

“I have lived for a long time. I have killed many, saved many. In the last century no one has brought me as much joy as Felicity has. A father never shows favoritism but let me make it clear to you that out of all my children there is no one I love more than my little girl. The decision to arrange this marriage was not made lightly and it was made at the expense of my relationship with her, a sacrifice I am willing to make for Felicity’s sake. Although I have ordered this marriage against her wishes let me be clear on one thing. You are both equal in this marriage. You do not hold any power over my daughter and you are not to force her into anything she is not ready for. You are to let this relationship progress in its natural course, whatever that may be.” 

Ra’s places a hand on Oliver’s shoulder, gripping it forcibly while giving him a cool smile. The kind of smile that said _I will slit your throat, revive you in the Lazarus Pit and then slit your throat again if you lay one unwanted finger on my daughter_. 

“Have I made my intentions clear Al Sah Him?”

“I understand My Lord,” Oliver nods calmly. “I…through chance I met Felicity before we were formally introduced and after that meeting I became thoroughly invested in this marriage. Felicity Smoak is a remarkable girl. I will forever be grateful to you for giving me this chance to be with her.”

“That she is,” Ra’s smiles indulgently at the mention of Felicity, releasing his death grip on Oliver. “So you have already met by chance? Another auspicious sign. The universe agrees with me on this decision.” 

Out of nowhere Ra’s claps Oliver on the back. “I wish you the best of luck my boy. You see these grey hairs on my head? She caused half of them throughout the years. Although your life will be richer for it.” 

Ra’s laughs heartily and Oliver can’t help but wonder just what he’s willingly gotten himself into and just how much trouble can one pint sized Felicity Smoak cause.

***

“Baby Sister please accept this gift as a token of my good wishes for your marriage.” Out of nowhere Nyssa produces a dagger and presents it to Felicity looking rather pleased with herself. “It is my favorite dagger and can be used to ward off any unwanted affections from your husband.” 

Felicity practically jumps in alarm at this particular statement. “Sheesh Nyssa. Are you saying he’s going to try and jump me? I’ve heard rumours that he’s a mansl…ladies man but surely he can’t be that bad I need a dagger to fend him off. Father wouldn’t marry me off to someone like that…” her voice trails off.

Although she was mad as hell at Oliver for lying to her and embracing the crazy that was this marriage, there was nothing about him that raised alarm bells. Certainly nothing to make her think she’d need a dagger. Unless her ability to read and judge people was seriously off. 

“I believe Al Sah Him is a man of honour however I am aware of your displeasure in this marriage. I thought this dagger would be helpful to you in making your point early in the wedding night at how displeased you are with this union.” 

Nyssa gives Felicity such a sincere smile it suddenly occurs to Felicity that Nyssa thinks it’s a perfectly good idea to pull a knife on Oliver and threaten him a bit when he gets back to the room. Oddly enough Felicity is touched by her sister’s own strange brand of thoughtfulness. Nyssa loved that dagger and had killed goodness knows how many people with it. It was a huge gesture on her part to give the dagger to Felicity. 

“Umm…that’s really sweet of you Nyssa but you know me. I’ve never been a fan of pointy objects. That is waaaaay more up your alley. I can’t take your favorite dagger away from you.” 

“But you must accept a gift from me and I know you would like to make an impression on Al Sah Him tonight,” Nyssa responds earnestly pushing the dagger into Felicity’s hands.

“You know that pink sapphire necklace Father gave you that you NEVER wear? Can I have that instead?”

“As you wish. I have no use for such trinkets,” Nyssa agrees at once and slots her dagger back under her robes, looking relieved not to have to part with it. “You do need to find a way to get your point across as to how displeased you are though Baby Sister.”

“Ahh yes! Don’t you worry about that. I’ll take care of it. If you want to be extra helpful can you get me the following items as fast as possible?” 

She rattled off a list of things quickly, with Nyssa looking more stunned at each request. 

*** 

“Baby Sister, Al Sah Him is a high decorated warrior with superior skills. He will not fall for this childish trick of yours,” Nyssa clucks with disapproval at Felicity’s little set up. 

“Tell me Nyssa, you are also a great warrior, on par with Al Sah Him I assume. What do you look for before you enter a room?” Felicity asks calmly from behind the dressing barrier as she changes into a pair of comfy pajamas. She was expecting to get a good night’s sleep tonight. The wedding festivities and setting up her little trap had worn her out.

“Movements, sounds, weapons or potential weapons. I scan the area for the number of possible threats and targets.”

“Would you be looking for that?” Felicity points up at the ceiling above the door to her chambers.

“I would not look for such a ridiculous display,” Nyssa concedes.

“Thank you for being a good sport and helping out Nyssa,” Felicity throws her arm around her sister, giving her an affectionate hug. Nyssa immediately stiffens but resigns to patting Felicity on the arm awkwardly. 

“I shall leave you for now Baby Sister.”

“Watch your step on the way out,” Felicity chuckles as Nyssa deftly avoids her little set up. 

***

Oliver takes a few deep breaths before taking the last step towards the quarters he was to share with Felicity. Ra’s had given them the entire North Wing of the palace to themselves which consisted of more rooms than they could keep track of however it was expected that they were to share the same sleeping quarters despite the large number of free rooms. 

Oliver felt his heart thumping nervously, his stomach seemingly in knots. It wasn’t going to be a typical wedding night by any stretch of the imagination and try as he might, he could not envision what will take place tonight.

Closing his eyes and taking one last breath to calm himself, Oliver reaches for the door handle and turns it, stepping into the room that he was now to share with his new wife.

His foot hits a piece of string causing his defensive reflexes to kick in at once however it was too late. His defensive reflexes were trained against arrows, knives, bullets, combative blows and other dangerous weapons. They were not trained to anticipate the gallons of ice-cold water and giant lump of ice that fell on his head all at once from the ceiling. 

“Enjoy your cold shower?” Felicity’s voice asks. “THAT is for lying to me and deciding that you’re going to embrace your inner crazy and go along with this marriage Mister. You were the one who wanted this so I’m giving you a taste of what’s in store for you for the rest of your life if you don’t hand over the token.”

Oliver lets out a startled shriek as his eyes land on a Felicity’s face which was covered in a shiny, slimy, translucent facial mask, something he had never seen in real life before, hence the fright it gave him. Her hair was frizzy and tied up in two high pigtails, probably done on purpose he later noted, to add to the gruesome effect. 

Rationally he knew it was just Felicity standing there. She wasn’t even carrying a weapon. He could see her lithe figure in a light pink singlet top and bright pink pajama pants covered with pictures of donuts. However the combination of the ice cold water, the huge lump of ice and a feral looking Felicity glaring at him ferociously underneath that horrific looking gel like mask all worked in cohesion to give him the shock he didn’t think he was capable of feeling. He had faced mass murderers; the Black Archer, snipers and a melting pot of various assassins but nothing had prepared him for this wedding night and his new wife.

Oliver didn’t know how long he stood there after his embarrassing yelp however he manages to regroup himself after staring at Felicity for a few seconds. So this was what he had signed up for. This ferocious, creative and humorous woman. No one had managed to sneak an attack on him for years and although she did capitalize on his preoccupation, Oliver found himself feeling a strange surge of pride towards his new wife. People were very predictable and seldom surprised him, yet Felicity was able to do it. 

“Your father warned me about this. Nicely played Felicity.” He flashes her a good-natured grin. As Oliver runs his hands through his wet hair, he notices her eyes lingering on him underneath that scary mask. So Felicity was checking him out. Immediately Oliver pushes the door closed, locks it and starts stripping off his wet clothes.

“Hey!!! What are you doing? Are you crazy?” Felicity cries, flinging herself at him to stop him from taking his clothes off.

“You doused me with gallons of ice cold water. I need to strip off and change,” Oliver shrugs at her, flinging off the final layer of his wet robes so that he was now shirtless. He was about to start on his pants when it was Felicity’s turn to let out a yelp. 

“Go to the bathroom and do it! You can’t take your pants off here!” she cries, trying to push him towards the bathroom. He feels her fingers brushing the muscles on his back, hovering and touching for just a few seconds longer than they should and grins to himself. 

“Why not? It’s my room too. I haven’t done anything disrespectful towards you. I wouldn’t dream of it.” 

“You…you can’t just walk around with no pants on,” Felicity gulps, her eyes darting to his crotch for a split second before she averts them quickly. “You…you need to be decent. Didn’t you claim that you were a decent upstanding guy the other day?”

“I need to get out of these wet clothes,” Oliver shrugs. “You might as well know Felicity, I don’t like wearing clothes when I’m in my private chambers. Never have. Just something you’ll have to get used to. I promise to respect you in every other way.” 

Oliver suddenly finds himself enjoying this new form of combat. He’d been to hell and back in the past and this was his newfound slice of heaven, quite unexpectedly so. Warfare with Felicity Smoak. She was mad at him for going through with the marriage anyway and nothing he had said remotely placated her. Might as well go along with this new semi hostile dynamic that had been established by her. He strips off his pants and bends down to gather his wet clothes, placing them in the bucket that had been used to trap him.

“You…you can’t just walk around with your junk hanging out like that,” Felicity whispers, despite not taking her eyes off said junk. 

“No one is stopping you from shutting your eyes or turning around Felicity,” he grins at her and tugs playfully at one of her pigtails. “Besides if you are free to walk around looking like a little gremlin with that on your face, I’m free to engage in a bit of nudity. You’re a big girl, you can handle it.” 

He gives her a pat on the shoulder and heads towards the bathroom, slowly to give her a full view of his buck naked rear end.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hehe if you like their bickering you will enjoy the next chapter =P


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi Guys!
> 
> Thank you SO SO SO much for the wonderful response to chapter 2! I am still a bit stunned by it! 
> 
> Here is your update! Hope you enjoy it! 
> 
> I'm hoping to finish this in 5 chapters but just thought I'd warn you guys it may grow to 6 depending on whether I have scenes I can't cut out! 
> 
> I might also need to change the rating later if certain events take place!

_Surely a bucket of ice water couldn’t have hurt his ego that much_ Felicity thinks to herself as she watches Oliver from across the dining table, eating dinner, shirtless. She wasn’t sure what game he was playing but the man had spent virtually the first month of their marriage without a shirt on. His body might be amazing to look at but surely Oliver didn’t think she was going to cave and declare the marriage to be a success just because he flashed his pecs and abs at her repeatedly. It was incredibly stupid and Felicity almost wished that the heart eyed Oliver she’d met at the beginning was back. Still at least he wasn’t shirtless and heart eyed. Felicity wasn’t entirely confident she could handle shirtless and heart eyed at the same time. Or shirtless and angry. Yup shirtless and angry would be her undoing.

He had an aggravating smirk on his face to accompany his constant state of undress, which Felicity was thankful for. As much as she was enjoying the view, the smirk rubbed her the wrong way and kept her from jumping his bones. Yes she was willing to admit over the course of the month there had been a few times when she was tempted to jump his bones. Hadn’t she just finished two complicated degrees? Didn’t she promise herself she was going to live, really live after MIT? She’d really be living if she were to tap that now wouldn’t she?

It might give him the wrong idea but Felicity figured if she issued a few disclaimers about how she was only using him to explore sex that would set him straight and avoid any misunderstandings.

 _Nonono Felicity, under no circumstances are you to have sex with him_ , she scolds herself sternly. She settles for another lingering look in his direction (thank god he’d given up on going without pants and at least wore boxers around for now). _Look but do not touch! Never touch_ she tells herself as she lets out a hitched breathe. 

“What’s the matter? See something you like?” he asks, grinning at her smugly as he takes a giant bite out of a baked potato.

“If you’re going to peddle your wares constantly I’m going to look at them even if I’m not buying anything.” Felicity shoots back, shrugging her shoulders, accidentally causing the straps of her singlet to fall down. Oliver looks stricken for a moment as he stares at her bare shoulders before choking on his potato.

Ahh so it was like that. In the midst of being sexually frustrated by Oliver and trying to navigate through his constant state of shirtlessness Felicity had temporarily forgotten about the effect she had on him. Sashaying languidly over to his side, her one size too large singlet slipping even further now, revealing the tops of her breasts, Felicity bends over and starts stroking Oliver’s bare chest in round circles, her other hand flitting lightly across the muscles on his back. 

“Are you alright? You don’t sound so good. Let me do this for a little while. It’ll help with the coughing.” Felicity continues to stroke his chest, this time taking the opportunity to press her hips (which were coincidentally only just covered by tiny barely there sleep shorts) against his torso.

This proved to be the last straw for Oliver who let out a strangled yowl before pushing up from his chair and backing away from her. Felicity gives him one of her lopsided blink winks and advances towards him again. “Hey I promise I’m just trying to help.” She makes a big show of reaching for his chest again, this time making sure that her hip digs right into his groin where she felt something pokey and hard. 

“Oh,” Felicity looks up at him innocently, her pink lips forming a perfect O. She swivels her hips ever so slightly on purpose, making sure to rub his rock hard dick again. “Is that what’s bothering you?”

Oliver flashes her an absolutely stricken look before high tailing it out of the dining room, making a beeline for their bedroom.

“Turn on some mood music,” Felicity calls after him with a chuckle. “The sound proofing is not great in this place. I’ll be able to hear you.”

*** 

“Why do you think he’s summoning us today?” Oliver whispers to Felicity as they wait for Ra’s in the throne room. An unspoken temporary truce had been called between them since the last incident. Oliver having learned that Felicity despite looking the picture of sweet and innocence was anything but, had wisely decided to retreat and miraculously found clothing to wear in her company again. After all whatever he dished out to aggravate Felicity she could return ten fold. Felicity returned the gesture of good faith by no longer “accidentally” touching him in strategic “places” anymore. 

All in all there was peace in the North Wing aside from a few small bouts of bickering.

“Probably checking up to see how his great marriage plot is going and whether we look like we’re about to kill each other yet,” Felicity whispers back.

“Are we?” Oliver asks smiling at her.

“I don’t loathe you,” Felicity sniffs at him. “But I’d like you a whole lot more if you just gave me the token.” 

“Wouldn’t you miss me even a teeny tiny bit? What are you going to do back in Starling? Date a gangly looking nerd from the IT department at Kord Industries?” He gives her an affectionate nudge and Felicity finds herself smiling despite not wanting to. 

“Maybe I’d date the brilliant Dr Ray Palmer,” she grins, giving him another one of her lopsided winks. It was adorable how she insisted on winking despite being unable to do it properly.

“Just admit it. You’ll miss me. Bet you’ll miss the shirtlessness too.”

“You know just when I start to think that you are tolerable you say something that reminds of what a…mansl…promiscuous man you are.”

“I am NOT promiscuous! That was a long time ago. I was a different person back then. Besides I haven’t looked at anyone since Ra’s decreed that I was to marry you.” That earnest gentle look was back again and Felicity found it slightly disconcerting. For some reason the glimpses of sincerity from him bothered her greatly.

“Aww were you saving yourself for me?” she teases flippantly in an attempt to lighten the mood. Anything to stop him from giving her that…that doe eyed look again. 

“I was actually. After you landed in my arms you were all I could think about.” Oliver is completely starry eyed now as he reaches for her hand. Felicity finds herself unable to tear her gaze from him. She doesn’t know how long they stay like that for until the sound of a clearing throat makes them jolt out of…of whatever was happening between the two of them.

“My good children I see you are getting along splendidly,” Ra’s beams at them looking beyond pleased. They immediately spring apart, Oliver flushing bright crimson and Felicity pouting like a child who had been caught with her hand in the cookie jar.

“We haven’t killed each other yet if that’s what you’re worried about,” Felicity informs him with over the top cheeriness. “What did you summon us for Father?”

“I require your assistance in an urgent matter my dear. There is a dangerous individual that I wish to track. It is a time sensitive matter and the League’s traditional methods are….” 

“Ancient Father? Outdated?” Felicity grins at him cheekily. Oliver raises a concerned eyebrow. Favourite child or not he had never seen anyone tease Ra’s before.

“You will respect the centuries of traditions within the League,” Ra’s admonishes Felicity sternly before admitting, “But yes I concede that we have not had as much progress as we had hoped. The person in question is rather skilled at vanishing.”

“Just give me what you already have and I’ll whip up a few search algorithms. I’ll get you a location on him in no time Father.” Felicity was pleased at the prospect of having something to do. It had been interesting bickering with Oliver up until now but she really couldn’t spend all her time being idle and plotting against her husband until she extracted herself from the marriage. 

“Thank you my dear child. There is also the matter of utilizing technology to assist the younger recruits with their missions. I shall speak to you about that later.” 

“If I didn’t know better I would think you’re trying to find work to keep me busy Father,” Felicity teases Ra’s although she looked pleased at the prospect of helping him out. She had been dying to learn the inner workings of the League and introduce them to the 21st Century. Father was providing her with a perfect opportunity. At least it would keep her mind occupied during her time in Nanda Parbat.

“An occupied Felicity is a less mischievous Felicity,” Ra’s announces with the air of one who has had significant experience with Felicity’s propensity for mischief. Seeing Oliver’s surprised look Ra’s also adds by way of explanation, “I consulted a manuscript many years ago after I formally took on Felicity as my third child. It advised that gifted children with her abilities required mental stimulation in order to develop appropriately.”

“He means parenting books, he calls them manuscripts still,” Felicity explains to Oliver who is dumbfounded by this information. He, Thea, Sara and Laurel had also been saved my Ra’s, however they’d had a vastly different experience to Felicity it seemed. Oliver didn’t think Ra’s was capable of treating anyone the way he treated Felicity. This finally shed light onto the mystery as to why Felicity had been sent away all these years.

Oliver observes their dynamics curiously as they continue to engage in conversation. The pride in Ra’s’ eyes and the indulgent way he treated Felicity, Oliver gathers there was a price to pay for being Ra’s’ favourite child. It must be difficult being such an important figure in the eyes of a controlling man like Ra’s Al Ghul. Ultimately it was what cost Felicity her freedom and now bounded her to Oliver. Still Felicity seemed to be able to handle her father with ease and confidence.

***

“Where are you heading off to now?” Oliver asks as he trails alongside Felicity like a lost puppy. Felicity fought back a smile. She’s seen him march purposefully through these halls when he’s leading his men around, looking very much in command and in charge, so to have him lolloping by her side was amusing to say the least. 

“To code,” Felicity answers simply. “My brain cells have been wasted fighting with you since I got here and I welcome the change. You don’t have to follow me anymore you know. Why don’t you run along and shoot arrows or do whatever it is you assassins do in your spare time. I think Nyssa alternates between meditating and sparring with Sara.” 

“Trying to get rid of me?” Oliver’s tone is light but there is a hurt look in his eyes. Sometimes he could see a spark of acceptance from Felicity, amusement even. Other times it was clear he’d made no progress in terms of convincing her to give the marriage a chance. Self-doubt began to creep in. Perhaps he’d gone about this the wrong way. Maybe he should have given her the token and taken up her offer to be friends.

“Always,” Felicity smiles with exaggerated sweetness at him. “Have you finally caught on? Give me the token?” She holds out her hand again. It had become a little ritual with them whereby every few days Felicity would work demanding the token from him into one of their exchanges. 

“I probably should have given it to you before the wedding and before you used your loud voice on me several times. Now it’s too late. There is only one thing for me to do and that is to convince you of my devotion,” Oliver feigns exaggerated regret before smirking at her. Lapsing into his rascal attitude in order to exasperate her was Oliver’s default behavior whenever he felt a blow to his confidence when it came to Felicity. 

“You’ve got to be kidding me,” Felicity huffs. “If you are going to hover while I code which of course you are, you need to BE QUIET. I will brain you with my laptop if you annoy me.”

“You’re letting me near you while you code. I knew you were coming around to this relationship,” Oliver grins at her.

Felicity casts him a withering look. Why couldn’t she be stuck in an arranged marriage with some sort of hot broody assassin like she had often read about in her saucy novels? They could give each other simmering looks from across the room or something. Sure she’d still try to escape from the marriage but it would be so much less exhausting than bickering every day with Oliver.

“Ollllliiiiiiieee,” a shrill voice rings out suddenly and they both turn to see a thin, petite brunette running after them. Well running after Oliver to be precise, as the brunette immediately tries to reach out to touch him, a move which Oliver deftly avoids, ducking behind Felicity. 

“Ollie I haven’t seen you for so long. I know you’re married now but I know you didn’t want this marriage. You know you can always come by and see me anytime you want,” the girl croons at Oliver, completely ignoring Felicity as if she didn’t exist at all.

“I don’t want!” Oliver pipes up from behind Felicity, a particularly peculiar sight as he was obviously trying to shrink himself as much as he could to seek cover behind her.

Felicity examines the girl curiously, mentally sorting through all of Nyssa’s gossip (Nyssa had a penchant for gossiping despite her general demeanour, you really could never tell with people) to work out who this girl was. The ex girl friend. The VERY devoted, never give up, stage five clinger ex girlfriend, whom Oliver couldn’t shake.

“You must be Laurel. Gorgeous Laurel,” Felicity smiles at her before turning around to give Oliver a victorious look. 

There was fear in Oliver’s eyes as he looked at her pleadingly, wordlessly seeking her help to escape from this Laurel who seemed to bother him immensely.

“Ollie I know you’re scared to upset her because she is Ra’s’ daughter but she’s only some stray he took in. She’s not even his real daughter or part of the League like we are,” Laurel says rudely casting Felicity a disdainful look.

Before Oliver could reply Felicity gives Laurel a saccharine sweet smile, “Nooo I’m not a badass like the rest of you. You’ve all got assassin code names right? Oliver is the Arrow and hmm let me remember what yours is. Black something? Black Bird? That’s just like the nursery rhyme!” 

_Sing a song of six pence_

_A pocket full of rye_

_Four and twenty blackbirds baked in a pie_  

Felicity bursts into song so suddenly and jovially with an adorable little head bobble that Oliver can’t help but laugh despite his desire to flee from Laurel as quickly as possible. How could Felicity do things like this and then expect him to hand over the token? Even her voice was perfect. Melodic and light.

“It’s Black Canary,” Laurel grinds out through clenched teeth before addressing Oliver again. “Ollie I’ve missed you. Why won’t you even talk to me anymore?” 

“I am a married man now. A changed man who is devoted to my wife,” Oliver practically shouts back at Laurel as he resumes ducking behind Felicity again. “Ra’s may have ordered the marriage but she fell from the sky right into my arms and from that moment I knew I had found my always. She makes me the happiest man on the face of the earth.” 

“Oh for the love of Google,” Felicity mutters under her breath. That nonsense again? How was she going to get him to hand over the token if he kept lapsing into that fall from the sky nonsense at every chance? Felicity really regretted scaling that wall now. There was a high chance that if she hadn’t scaled that wall and fallen into his arms, Oliver would not have bought into her father’s crazy.

“Ollie,” Laurel whines. “I know I’m not the love of your life but you’ll always be the love of mine. I just don’t want it to end like this.”

“And you are right! It doesn’t have to end like this,” Felicity beams at Laurel, a wicked idea forming in her head. “Oliver doesn’t mean anything he’s saying. He’s just scared of Father. Our marriage is a farce. You come visit Oliver anytime you want. Remind him that he’s the love of your life.”

Setting Laurel and her unwanted affections on Oliver might just crack him enough for him to hand over the token. At the very least it would teach him a lesson for lying to her and going through with the marriage. Felicity didn’t bring it up again but Oliver not telling her he was Al Sah Him was still a sore spot for her. 

Without any warning Oliver picks her up and throws her over his shoulder. 

“Hey what do you think you’re doing?” Felicity yelps in surprise.

“Taking you to bed,” he answers, glaring at her fiercely. Felicity couldn’t say she disliked it. This was strangely beginning to look like a scene from one of her saucy novels. 

“My wife has a unique sense of humour. Always joking. We’re talking about the girl who ran away from Ra’s’ men repeatedly and threw itching powder over them. Another reason why I fell for her right away. Goodbye. Remember I’m married now. And in love with Felicity. My wife.” He said the word wife as if he liked hearing the sound of it over and over again. 

Felicity’s dress has ridden up high now and she could feel his hands all over her thighs, skirting dangerously close to her butt cheeks. Just like in her saucy novels where the highhanded hero carries the heroine off somewhere to make passionate love to her.

 _No love, no passion. You cannot use this to cosplay one of those smutty novels_ Felicity scolds herself, feeling ashamed she even went there for a brief moment. 

“You are such a bad girl to make up stories about us,” Oliver admonishes her before he marches off with her still dangling over his shoulder, his hands gripping on her thighs.     

“Put me down or I’ll use itching powder on you,” Felicity threatens half-heartedly as he walks them back to the North Wing, ignoring her demands.

*** 

“Looks like I hit a nerve back there,” Felicity teases in a singsong voice as Oliver swings around trying to decide where to deposit her in their living room. There was a dark, fierce look in his eyes, clearly unimpressed by her little stunt in front of his ex as he places her down on the sofa. Oliver takes hold of her hand; his touch is gentle even though those piercing blue eyes were staring at her intensely like all he wanted to do was to grip onto her. 

“I’ve made a mistake in how I handled this, how I approached you.” His tone is wistful as his gaze softens. “I should have…actually I don’t know how I should have handled it because you literally fell into my arms and I…I just didn’t know what to make of things after that.” 

Felicity places her hand on top of his and looks at him earnestly, “I know that’s how you’ve been raised in this place, and I get it. Nyssa talks about signs and forces and the heavens all the time so believe me I get it. But you’ve got to try to think beyond that. Leave behind that train of thought and look at this the way a calm, sane person like myself would.”

“I don’t know that I’d call you calm and sane,” Oliver chuckles at her choice of words in spite of himself. His face turns serious and he gives her hand a squeeze before retrieving a small, palm sized metallic plaque from his robes.

“This is what you want isn’t it?” 

“It’s actually gold,” Felicity stares at the token, not quite believing that he had actually let her take a glimpse at it. If she knew what it looks like she’d have a much better chance at lifting it off him when he was unaware.

“You’d never be able to lift it off me,” he warns her, looking amused as if he were able to read her mind. “You’ve got very animated facial expressions Felicity. Your face is practically screaming how do I steal this?”

“Why are you flaunting it then? Unlike your wares I actually want this,” Felicity sighs at him.

“You sure you don’t want my wares?” Oliver waggles his eyebrows at her, unable to resist the dig. 

Felicity lets out a disgruntled huff and tosses her head indignantly. Oliver reaches for her hand again. “If I promise to give you this token after a year, do you think you could give us a chance?” 

“What do you mean by give us a chance exactly?” Felicity asks cautiously. “You don’t mean like date you for a year to get the token? I’m not comfortable with that...”

“I mean don’t try to leave or try to run away for a year. And forgive me for lying to you when we first me. And umm the whole stolen kiss thing. No more bad blood between us.”

“So basically don’t antagonize you for a year and get the token?” 

“Oh by all means antagonize me, I enjoy it,” Oliver grins at her. “Just don’t hold our first meeting against me anymore.” He places a hand on her shoulder and nudges it gently. “Please?” 

Felicity had to admit he was looking incredibly sincere. And rational too. There was something about the exchange that was different to the tone of their usual banter. Oliver himself was talking to her like he saw her and really understood where she was coming from for the very first time. There was no trademark insufferable smirk or puppy heart eyes. The smirk she knew was designed to aggravate her however it was always the puppy heart eyes that troubled her more as they always made her think he was too besotted to think rationally.

Still no matter what she thought of him she had to keep her wits about. 

“I can do that. But I’ll need a sign of good faith from you. Since you lied to me and all.” She jabs him on the shoulder with a finger to make her point. He really was built like a brick wall. So hard, so solid. 

“What do you need as a sign of good faith?” Oliver asks eagerly. As much as he’d enjoyed their attempts to antagonize each other, he finally felt like they were free to move forward. 

“Give me the token and I promise I won’t go to Father with it until one year is up. You have my word.” 

Oliver doesn’t say anything but looks at her skeptically. Clearly he didn’t trust her with the token but he was too afraid of offending her to say so.

“If you believe in the heavens and all that mumbo jumbo about me falling into your arms from the sky then you should have faith that after a year something will develop between us yes? Because that is your schtick yes? All this stuff about meant to be, match made by the heavens that you guys are all so fond of.”

“If you run the heavens won’t have a year of time to work with,” Oliver says slowly trying to work out what he should do. If Felicity had the token she might run to Ra’s and leave the next time he was off on a mission. On the other hand he felt like they weren’t ever going to move forward if he wilfully held her back. Felicity was stubborn, that much he knew for sure.

“I haven’t lied to you at all since we’ve met. I have always been above board with my threats to you. Would I really lie to you now?” Felicity smiles a coaxing smile at him, looking the picture of innocence. Somehow it doesn’t convince him but at this point Oliver doesn’t feel like he has many choices left. This wasn’t combat, neither was it an attack on enemy territory. Maybe he just had to take the same leap of faith he was asking of her.

“Okay,” he says simply, looking at her intently.

“Okay?” Felicity stares at him, not quite believing it had been so easy to get him to give up the token. 

“I trust you.” He unfolds her hand and presses the token into her palm. “I don’t ever take people at their word but if it’s you asking I’ll do it.” 

“Just so we’re clear there will be no hard feelings if I use this token after a year? And we’re not dating or involved with each other. We’re just going to be like room mates in Nanda Parbat.”

“Room mates,” Oliver echoes looking unsure of himself again. He was always going to second-guess himself when it came to this intriguing woman but at least he was proactively trying to get into Felicity’s good books now and wiping the slate clean between them. 

“It really is gold,” Felicity admires the token after biting it to check if it was indeed gold. “I wonder if Father will require me to surrender it when I use it or will he let me take it so I can sell it for gold content.” 

“You promised you wouldn’t surrender it until after a year,” Oliver reminds her looking both alarmed and indignant at the same time. There was a glint in her eyes that rattled him, although with Felicity he wasn’t entirely sure of she planned to pull a fast one over him or whether she was going to constantly act suspect about the token just to ensure he did not have a moment of peace. This brought on a new onslaught of emotions, emotions Oliver had never felt before and was finding difficult to process.

He knew hardship and was more than familiar with darkness and fear. The state in which he existed right now, one of joy and amusement but laced with a tinge of slight apprehension was one he had trouble navigating. Compounded by the fact that Felicity looked like she knew exactly what she was doing further added to Oliver’s woes. Not sure of what to say he stares at her with a dopey expression as he rubs his head, looking rather morose.

“Don’t stress about it Oliver. Do I look like the type of girl to trick you out of the token and then use it to leave this place forever when you go on your next mission for Father?” She tilts her head and pouts at him with wide-eyed innocence despite Oliver knowing she was anything but. 

***

It briefly crossed Felicity’s mind a few times just how easy it would be for her to march in to see Father and hand that token over. That would put an end to this ridiculous arranged marriage and all of Oliver’s nonsensical mooning over her. She had been dragged back here away from her life, her ambitions and made to surrender her freedom.

She owed Oliver nothing; there was no honor among thieves or in this case assassins. Furthermore he hadn’t been very bright just handing over the token like that. It was like taking candy from a baby. One that didn’t even cry or kick up a fuss. She really couldn’t spend the rest of her days attached to such a foolish man no matter how hot he was. It would be for the best if she left the poor dumb well-meaning pine tree. 

Felicity let out a heavy sigh and rolled to her side, unable to sleep. She wasn’t an assassin or a thief so maybe there was some honour that applied to her. And it wasn’t Oliver’s fault he was so easy to trick and not the brightest spark. He’d be absolutely crushed if she were to go back on her word. Wasn’t there some law back home whereby you had to protect the stupid from themselves? She couldn’t really leave and shatter his faith in humanity could she? Oddly enough for an assassin he was incredibly trusting. Dumb pine tree with his stupid heart eyes. Couldn’t even let her escape early in peace. 

Rolling to her other side for what must be the twelfth time by now Felicity lets out a huff in the darkness. She could hear Oliver’s steady breathing on the couch a few feet away. Somebody was sleeping with a clear conscience, unlike her.

When they first moved in together Oliver had stoically committed to sleeping on the couch. Felicity had been too outraged by the marriage to care. He’d warn her under no circumstances was she to try and approach him or wake him while he was asleep. Felicity recalled snapping back that she had no desire to go anywhere near him anyway. When the nightmares started she’d call out to him from her bed the few times they’d woken her up. Oliver was always so apologetic for interrupting Felicity’s sleep when she did manage to wake him.

Felicity wanted to think it was a coincidence but it seemed that the more time they cohabited, the less frequent the nightmares became, something she did not bring up with Oliver lest he give her another declaration about how her magical sunshine existence was going to spray him with light, clear his complexion (figure of speech here, the man had very shiny lickable skin especially when he was all sweaty) and let him live forever. They didn’t need that kind of thinking encouraged in this place. 

Scowling in the dark because of Oliver’s peaceful slumber, Felicity decides to haul herself out of bed and raid the kitchen of the North Wing. Everyone must be asleep by now, including the servants and she didn’t want to make trouble for anyone (the concept of people serving her still didn’t sit well with Felicity) but Felicity really needed a snack or two to help get her mind off that token. She couldn’t go back on her word she’d given Oliver; it just wasn’t in her nature to be like that no matter how beneficial it would be to her.

Felicity sits up and reaches for her robe, throwing it on quickly. Feeling around for her slipper she slides her feet into them and pads out of the room.

***

 _She left_ , Oliver thinks grimly to himself. She’d waited a week but ultimately she’d had enough and was probably sneaking out to see Ra’s right now. After all this trust he placed in her, Felicity didn’t even have the decency to wait for him to go on a mission before trying to high tail it out of here. 

For the past week Oliver had finally started to accept that giving Felicity the token was one of his better ideas. She still teased him mercilessly about using it but he could see…something in her eyes when she looked at him. A certain affection, fondness that made his spirits soar.

All that came crashing down the moment he heard her slink out of the room, presumably heading off to see her father. Angrily Oliver yanks out the pillow from under his head and rips it apart with his bare hands. He can feel the soft down floating out of it and landing on his lap. Throwing the now torn rags away, Oliver storms out of the room. He wasn’t going to let Felicity Smoak pull a fast one on him like that. If she was going to throw his trust away, Oliver was damn well going to make sure he confronted her about it. 

***

Oliver is only three quarters of the way down the corridors of the North Wing when he spots a light ahead and soon after that Felicity’s slipper clad feet pattering towards him. She was carrying what appeared to be a tray ladened with food and using the torch function on her tablet as her source of light. 

A feeling of pure relief and sheer delight washes over him. Felicity had snuck out for food. Food. She didn’t use the token. She didn’t go back on her word. He hadn’t been wrong to put his faith in her.

“Felicity,” he calls, stepping out in the middle of the hall, quite forgetting the imposing figure he presented standing there with his bare chest in nothing but a pair of boxer shorts.

Felicity lets out a startled scream, almost dropping the entire tray of food but somehow rallies to grab it again just in time. She was very motivated when it came to food.

“Holy Frak! Oliver!” she whispers crossly. “What on earth possessed you to think it was a good idea to stand half naked in the middle of the corridor and call out to me?”

Although she was glaring at him, Oliver was too gleeful to care. Felicity had never looked so beautiful to him as she did at this very moment, now that he knew she wasn’t leaving him.

“I woke up and you weren’t there so I went looking for you,” he smiles at her like they’ve been living with each other forever and this was just something that he always did. “Here let me take that for you.” Oliver swoops over and unburdens her of the tray. 

Felicity eyes him suspiciously but doesn’t make any further comment about the situation. “I couldn’t sleep so decided I’d go and gather enough food to eat my way into slumber.”

Oliver holds open the door for her when they get to their living quarters. Felicity makes a beeline for the bedroom and switches the light on.

“Oliver Queen you thought I left! You thought I was going to find Father to use the token,” Felicity declares triumphantly, amused at having caught him out.

“What makes you say that?” Oliver asks vaguely, feigning confusion, looking like he wasn’t really sure what she was talking about.

“I know you’re not the sharpest arrow in the quiver but don’t play dumb with me. There are feathers everywhere from the pillow you no doubt shredded with your bare hands in a fit of rage.” 

“I may have over reacted. You can’t blame me Felicity. I thought you were going to leave without even saying goodbye after you gave me your word. I…I was so upset at the thought of you leaving.”

“So you had all this rage coursing through you and you shredded the cushion with your bare hands?” Felicity’s not looking like she thinks that’s a bad thing as she sashays towards him.

“Yeees,” Oliver replies looking completely puzzled by now because it almost feels like Felicity is turned on by the idea of him being a raging assassin who murders pillows. “Err is that a bad thing?”

“Not trusting me is a bad thing but the angry thing…that might not be so bad,” Felicity licks her lips as she taps his chest. Oliver freezes on the spot, unsure of what to do next. He knew they were attracted to each other but this was another side of Felicity he didn’t know existed and wasn’t prepared for.

Fortunately Felicity comes to her senses and the wicked glimmer in her eyes vanishes as she smiles at him brightly. “You wanted us to get to know each other right roomie? How about I put on some Stargate SG1 and we eat all this?”

“I’d like that,” Oliver beams shyly at her, unable to contain his happiness.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hehe I wonder what will happen when they inevitably try to have sex =P


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Halloooo
> 
> I'm back with your next update! 
> 
> I had to increase it to 6 chapters but I think this is it! No more chapter increases!
> 
> Usual OOC disclaimers!

“Aren’t you finished yet? It’s all green.”

“No I’m still writing a few tests for it.”

“But you said if it’s all green means it passed all your testing.” Oliver was eager for Felicity to finish this coding rampage she was on so they could spend some time together.

Ever since the night he thought she tried to leave they’d formed a steady… bond of sorts. He hesitated to use the word friendship because it felt like there was more than that. Well he hoped there would be more than that one-day. They’d been pushed together by unique circumstances and were both now trying to navigate their relationship with each other. There was an undeniable spark between them besides the camaraderie and ability to just be together with ease. In fact he would go out on the limb to say it was this spark that was causing some confusion and tension in an otherwise effortless, albeit spirited friendship.   

Handing over the token to her was the best decision he had ever made. They still bickered incessantly about things but that resentment and distrust she had for him after their first meeting was no longer present. Oliver felt they were finally getting to know each other without the burden of the arranged marriage casting a shadow over them.

“Yes but I need to run more tests. Do you know how many years it’s taken for Father to finally caved on his stance regarding technology? This has to be perfect. It is my big launch to the League.” Felicity frowns as her fingers fly on the keyboard.

“He expects you to be perfect doesn’t he?” Oliver watches Felicity. Her brows were furrowed as her eyes scanned through each line of code. She clearly felt she needed to live up to Ra’s expectations, which was to seamlessly build and implement a new computing system for the League and it’s recruits. Everything was to work the very first time, no crashes, no mistakes.

“Probably no more than he expects from the rest of you. At least I don’t get punished for it if I do make one. Somehow I imagine that failure is not an option for you guys either and the consequences aren’t like the lectures I’m subjected to.” Felicity stops typing and glances at the scars on his body. This is the first time she’s ever shown any visible reaction to them. She usually ogled at him shamelessly. 

“Only one was due to the League. It was from the branding when I first pledged my allegiance to the League of Assassins.”

Felicity places a cool hand on his back and looks at him. There is no mischievous glint in her eyes, no teasing. She wasn’t trying to wind him up but wanted to offer comfort.

“It took me many years to gain my skills,” Oliver tells her with a casual smile. “Trial by fire and all. I learned a lot and became who I am today.”

“You did well to rise to Heir of the Demon,” Felicity smiles looking up at him, her hand still on his back, now rubbing in soothing circles. Oliver leans back into her hand, accepting this gesture of affection, which leaves him balancing the precarious line between the feeling curiously peaceful and yet jittery at the same time. His heart was racing; his breathing laboured, yet there was a wonderful sense of calm and peace he hadn’t felt before. 

“It was worth it to meet you,” he finally gathers all his strength and is about to grab Felicity’s hand when they hear a familiar shrill voice piercing through the courtyard.

“Let me in! Don’t you dare stop me. Ollie is a close friend and I am to visit anytime I want. Let me in or I’ll make you pay,” Laurel’s voice can be heard screeching at the guards outside the North Wing.

Cursing under his breath about the fact that their tender little moment was now spoilt, Oliver raises an eyebrow at Felicity and gives her a reproachful look, to which Felicity responds by batting her eyes at him innocently.

“Hey she’s your ex,” she says, flicking her earring and grinning at him before turning back to her code.

Oliver lunges over and pulls Felicity onto his lap, causing her to let out an adorably flustered high-pitched squeak.

“Felicity,” he whispers ever so closely into her ear. “Wanna play a game?”

“What game are we playing?” she pouts at him shamelessly. 

“Playing the _you find a way to get rid of my nuisance ex because you’re the one who invited her over_ game?” Oliver tries his best to look annoyed which technically shouldn’t be hard with Laurel yelling outside but he can barely hold a straight face as Felicity continues to pout and shake her head at him.

They hear Laurel’s footsteps stomping in defiantly. The guards had evidently given up dealing with her.

Oliver tightens his grip around Felicity, who is still on his lap, his arm wound possessively around her waist. “Felicity hold onto me tight and pretend you’re into me.”

Out of nowhere Felicity’s hand flies to his crotch and latches onto his cock causing his heart to almost go into cardiac arrest. “Fe-li-cit-ee,” Oliver grinds out, his eyes opening so wide they practically threaten to fall out of his head. “What are you doing?” 

“You said to hold onto to you tight and pretend I’m into you,” Felicity responds, giving his crotch a firm squeeze. “Hey it’s hard. Did it just get hard or is it like always hard? Is it hard cuz I’m on your lap? Does that mean you’re thinking dirty thoughts about me, which if you are shame on you, or is it hard even when you’re not thinking dirty thoughts about me?”

“Felicity stop squeezing it,” Oliver says through gritted teeth. There were many things he could handle but Felicity being casually conversational while gripping onto his cock was a bridge too far.

“You said to hold onto something,” Felicity says accusingly, looking like she was perfectly well within her rights to explore around his nether regions and had no intention of letting go. Evidently she was fascinated by his reaction and was looking to see what other ways she could push his buttons. 

“Not my crotch,” Oliver whispers back. “I meant my shoulder or arms. And look like you’re in love with me. Why would your mind even go there? Stop squeezing it.”

“Oh right, sorry. Misunderstood you and got carried away. I thought we were going all in for the show.” Felicity smiles at him innocently and pulls her hand away, placing it on his shoulder. Oliver doesn’t know whether he’s feeling relieved, disappointed or confused. How she even had the gall to look angelic was beyond him. He was still trying to work out what was going on in Felicity’s mind for her to do something like that. Having been at war with her earlier on, he’d been privy to a few glimpses of the rapscallion side of Felicity but he still wasn’t prepared for this. The girl should really come with a warning. Prior to their truce she’d come up with various ways to torture him, each method strategically thought out. Now it seemed as if she had abandoned her filters altogether and simply rolled along, doing whatever she wanted to elicit a reaction from him for kicks and drive him crazy.

“Ollie I’m here to see you like I promised.” It was amazing the way Laurel managed to pop up everywhere with great efficiency whenever she wasn’t wanted. Which was all the time in Oliver’s world. It was probably some sort of penance for his misspent youth.

“About that Laurel,” Felicity straightens herself up on Oliver’s lap, head held high as she addresses Laurel. “When I made that offer the other day for you to come and visit Oliver I wasn’t in love with him yet but now I am.” Felicity leans forward to nuzzle his nose, her eyes full of mirth.

“He…he…umm has many great qualities. Great great qualities…like great abs,” Felicity strokes his abs, running her hand up and down more times than was necessary. Oliver’s eyes go wide again as she speaks. “And muscles…lots of muscles and big…very big….” Felicity’s hand swiftly moves away from his abs and flies to his crotch again, patting it to indicate what she was trying to say despite not quite being able to find the words.

Laurel is staring at Felicity like she’s an alien while Oliver gives her an incredulous look and waggles an admonitory finger at her. Realizing that she’s put her foot in it, Felicity soldiers on.

“After getting to know him I’ve come to realize that he’s not so bad. He’s easy to talk to, understands me even though he hasn’t known me for very long, usually lets me have my way, believes he’s madly in love with me for some reason and is always sweet to me. Just look at those heart eyes. I could do worse. You know what they say. Parents know best. Guess my father did pick the best husband for me after all.”

Felicity rests her chin on his chest and gazes up at him adoringly. This proves to be too much for Oliver, who in that moment doesn’t care that she was probably putting on an act to fool Laurel like he asked. How could he resist when Felicity was looking at him with eyes like that?

Oliver reaches for her hand and intertwines their fingers together as they look straight into each other’s eyes. There’s an obvious change in the air as the mood in the room shifts. Laurel glares around uncomfortably as Oliver and Felicity gaze at each other, lost in their own little world.

“This isn’t over,” Laurel threatens as she storms out of the North Wing courtyard.

***

“Did you…did you mean what you said?” Oliver whispers, their hands still intertwined and Felicity still on his lap. 

“I did,” Felicity nods cheerfully. “You have great abs.” She grins at him impishly and just like that the spell previously cast is broken as she hops off his lap. Oliver has an overwhelming urge to stop her but respects her space so he doesn’t. Clearly she was trying to brush off what happened a few minutes ago.

Felicity glances at her screen but doesn’t resume working again. Instead she clicks the save button, leans back on her chair and closes her laptop.

“So what’s your story? How did you come to end up as Al Sah Him? I must have just missed you. Nyssa said you arrived a few months after I left for boarding school.”

“I want to know about you. I don’t know anything about you other than that you were adopted by Ra’s and became his favourite child.” Oliver pulls up a chair right next to Felicity, their arms touching, personal space be damned. 

Felicity doesn’t move away but instead nudges him playfully. “Hey I asked first. You can’t suddenly decide to put the focus on me.” She’d heard bits and pieces of his story from Nyssa. Nyssa kept tabs on everyone and when she was in the mood would relay information with much gusto. Still Felicity wanted to hear Oliver’s story from him personally. There was so much she wanted to know. How and why he ended up here. There were two completely different sides of Oliver that intrigued her and Felicity desperately wanted to understand how these two facets of his personality came to be. The smirking, cocky, smooth operator who lived for teasing her and the doe eyed romantic who believed in fate and universal forces.

“I gave you the token and you tried to inflict Laurel on me. I think you owe me your life story first.” Oliver looked as if he wasn’t going to give an inch on this if she didn’t share something about herself with him.

“Oh you know, my story is the usual tale as old as time. Parents get killed at young age, saved and adopted by the mighty ruler of assassins and then married off to his second in command.” Her tone is careless and light but a shadow crosses her features when she casually mentions her dead parents.

“Felicity,” Oliver says gently picking up her hand and holding it.

“My dad left when I was 5. He was involved with some unsavoury people. I’m not sure of mom sent him away or if he left of his own accord but one day he just never came back. They fought a lot so at least the fighting stopped after he was gone. My mom, she worked as a cocktail waitress in Vegas to support us. One day when I was 7, dad did come back. I could hear a lot of fighting. It had only been two years since he left but it was so familiar. The same old thing. So I went and hid in my room.” 

Felicity pauses and a sad haunted look crosses her face, “I was working on building a computer from scraps. We didn’t have much money but I salvaged parts from people’s unwanted machines and was on my way to building one that I would be happy with. I heard screams and…” 

Felicity swallows and shivers. Oliver wraps an arm around her shoulder. “I’m sorry. I should have known it would bring back bad memories. Don’t talk about it anymore.”

Felicity shakes her head. “No it was a long time ago. We’ve both got some darkness in our pasts. I want to tell you about it.”

Oliver shuffles even closer and gives her shoulder a gentle squeeze.

“My parents were both killed. Later Father told me it was by a group call HIVE. There…there was a lot of slashing sounds. I went and hid in a cupboard in my room. When the door opened I was expecting to be next but instead I saw a trail of dead bodies and there was Father smiling at me.” 

“Ra’s saved you personally?” That explained a lot about Felicity’s importance to Ra’s. Ra’s for as long as Oliver had known him, seldom carried out any business personally. For him to be involved in that mission and to discover Felicity himself, Ra’s being Ra’s would have taken it as a sign. Coupled with Felicity’s wit and intelligence Oliver could now see why Ra’s adopted her and doted over her. 

“He always said it was fate that I was to become his child.” Felicity smiles and the sadness leaves her face, replaced by a warm fondness as she speaks of Ra’s. “Father later told me he had no intention of being involved in such a trivial matter like following a lead on Damien Darhk, yet something compelled him to see to that mission personally. After my parents were killed and the HIVE ghosts made their way upstairs something took over and he ordered his people to kill them all. Then he went and found me.”

“You must have been terrified,” Oliver looks at her, wishing he could erase every horrible thing about her childhood and all those terrifying memories. It was a miracle to see this vivacious, happy go lucky, beam of sunshine before him despite her traumatic childhood.

“Father had a great hand in who I became today,” Felicity explains as if reading Oliver’s thoughts. “I was terrified, especially at the first glimpse of Father. We’d learnt about stranger danger at school and here I was facing this man who looked like the living embodiment of every bad guy who had ever existed. I was also left alone a lot due to my mother working all sorts of odd hours, which meant I did a lot of research and knew far too much about certain things that I had no business knowing. I was petrified he was going to sell me into child slavery or something.” 

“But he took you home and made you his princess?”

“Something like that,” Felicity answers. “Once at school we were told that no matter what, if we felt danger we were supposed to fight and run and scream. I still remember my teacher saying that if you scream and fight you might get away but if you follow the abductor you were as good as dead. So I made an almighty ruckus and tried to run. I even bit Father when he caught me and tried to calm me down.”

Felicity cracks a tiny smile before adding, “Then he took me home and made me his princess.” 

Oliver shakes his head in disbelief, trying his hardest to fight the urge to smile. The thought of Ra’s being bitten by a pint sized Felicity was an image he was unlikely to ever forget.

“Why did he send you away? Or should I say why did he agree to let you stay away for all those years?” 

“I didn’t fit in at Nanda Parbat. I grew very fond of Father and got along with Nyssa but I hated the training and all the talk of killing. I hated the weird ideology about fate and mystical events. I’d argue with Father all the time about it. I hated how backward the League was in terms of science.” She pauses and lets out a giggle. “I even took a sample from the Lazarus Pit and tested it because I was convinced it was all mumbo jumbo.”

“Oh yeah, what did you find?” Oliver grins at her. Little Felicity was exactly who he thought she would be.

“Interestingly enough there was a strangely high content of beneficial bacteria in those waters. I remember arguing with Father that the water wasn’t magic but the probiotics in it were probably doing wonders for him. It’s one big giant kombucha pond.”

Felicity leans into Oliver a bit more, her body obviously relaxing now. “By the time I turned nine, I felt like I was going out of my mind here. I looked up prominent world class boarding schools, presented my case and begged Father to let me go. To my complete surprise he agreed. I skipped a few grades, got a scholarship to MIT and never looked back until now.”

“You were alone all those years?” Oliver admired Felicity’s bravery, tackling the world on her own. Yet he felt a certain sadness for the little girl who clearly had to fend for herself.

“That’s the thing. I never felt alone. I feel terrible saying this but for as long as I could remember I had always felt alone with my parents. They were always fighting and screaming and then making up. After my dad left I hardly saw mom. It wasn’t her fault she had to work so much but I was very much alone.”

“But how was it different at boarding school?” Oliver asks curiously. “You didn’t even come back during summer vacation. Did you just stay there by yourself during summer too?” 

“Father always had someone spying and watching over me. In that sense I felt…protected. As for summer vacations, Father would always visit every summer and every major holiday. We’d stay in one of his league safe houses. He’d bring whichever concubine was his favourite, but they were probably instructed to be nice to me so there was never any issue there and Father was always so focused on me and my achievements even if he didn’t understand them and had no use for them. He would also make sporadic visits during the year. It sounds strange but I’d never had so much attention from a parent figure before. He was always there. I knew he was important. I knew he was like a king but he always had time for me. That meant a lot to me.”

Felicity smiles and rolls her eyes, “Of course it became a nuisance when I went to college.” Felicity taps Oliver’s chest and then her own, “And you know, the whole thing about marriage between us.”

Oliver is watching her intently now and Felicity blushes, suddenly feeling self conscious about baring her soul to him.

“I don’t want you to feel sorry for me. This is everything that happened and it isn’t meant to be a sob story at all. I consider myself extremely lucky. Father gave me everything for the remainder of my childhood. I got to go to school and to college. I lived as normal a life as anyone could under the circumstances.”

She tilts her head and smiles at him, bright and adorable, the traces of her disturbing childhood no longer evident. “I may have been forced to marry you but you didn’t turn out to be so bad.” Felicity pulls out the token and looks at it. “You gave me this which is as good as handing me my freedom back. Thank you Oliver.” 

She looks at him with gratitude and a certain yearning in her eyes. Her hands move up like she wants to touch him but she hesitates and folds them back into her lap even though she’s still leaning on him slightly. Felicity had no qualms touching him earlier but for some reason she didn’t dare to touch him right now. They weren’t bantering, any gesture of affection might mean something, might be taken the wrong way.

“I think I just missed you.” Oliver says after a bout of silence. Felicity hadn’t asked him again about his time in the League but he found himself wanting to tell her. “When we first got here there was talk that Ra’s sent off his youngest daughter to boarding school. I remember thinking what a peculiar decision that was after having met Talia and Nyssa. I assumed you were like them and thought it odd that Ra’s would send you away to live a western lifestyle. It even entered my head that you were going off to train as a special agent, specializing in the west.”

“You must have been what…14 or 15 when you got here?” 

“Fourteen. We were on a family boat trip. My parents, the Lance family, Thea and me. Our boat capsized in the North China Sea. Our parents perished but the League managed to save the rest of us.”

“Father recruited all of you to the League I take it?” There was something so jarring to Felicity about this group of people who had tragic circumstances befall them, much like her own and yet they ended up on a path completely different to hers.

“We weren’t amusing seven year old geniuses so the only use Ra’s found for us was to train us to be assassins.” Oliver teases her, the first sign of emotion she’s seen since he started telling his story. It surprises Felicity how neutral he remains while relaying all this to her. She wonders if it is all part of the stoic assassin response ingrained in them during their training. They were always to accept anything that came their way and never question it or respond emotionally. However it still didn’t explain the lighter more roguish Oliver who gave her a run for her money or the perpetually heart eyed Oliver who adored her.

“I had a wild youth,” he explains seeing the question in her eyes. “I was immature and it was my form of…stress relief I guess from this life.”

“I heard,” Felicity waggles her eyebrows at him. “What were you thinking with the sister swapping though? And didn’t you swap back twice?” Felicity wrinkles her nose and scrunches up her face, clearly finding this aspect of his life distasteful.

“I was a different person back then. The training, leaving my old life for this one. It did a number on me and that was my coping mechanism. I was a promiscuous man as you would say.” Oliver looks contrite, like he had wronged her personally somehow. 

“I actually called you a manslut until Nyssa lectured me on my crass speech habits,” Felicity grins. She shoulder checks him and smiles again. “Hey don’t look like that. We all have different ways of coping. I can’t imagine the trauma of having to learn to kill or be killed. Not to mention the threat of being terminated if you were of no use to the League.” 

Oliver looks at Felicity searchingly; puzzled at the understanding and empathy she had for him. Just who was this woman? She was so much more than the spoilt princess he had imagined her to be or the charming and irrepressible woman he married. Oliver would have liked a lifetime to get to know her but as it stands he only has a year. 

“Just because I am Father’s little princess does not mean I do not know the other side of him. You do not remain Ra’s Al Ghul for more than a century by being a softhearted, devoted father to all. I’m sorry you lost your parents, your old life and your freedom.” 

“I had a lot more freedom than you. We, my friends and I, we weren’t adored or given special treatment but as long as we fulfilled our duties and excelled in combat we were left to our own devices. No one cared that we made mistakes as long as they weren’t mission related ones. I get the sense Ra’s doesn’t let you making any mistakes and wants you to live in his carefully constructed world for you. I imagine it was hard growing up with Ra’s watching every move over your shoulder, even if it was out of love.” 

“I think there was a time when I welcomed it. My mother did her best but life was unpredictable and chaotic. Father brought a certain order into my life. I’d never experienced it before and to me it was a sign of love. Plus he always left me enough room to rebel. I avoided coming back here for ten years. I did outgrow his over protectiveness though. I vowed that after college I would stand up to him, live and make mistakes. There are so many things I want to experience…” Felicity smiles a small smile and blushes, leaving no doubt as to what those things she wants to experience are.

“But I can do all that after a year thanks to your token.”

The words hit him like a slap on the face and the reality of their situation once again presents itself in the clear harsh daylight. It seemed like no matter how much they bonded, no matter what they shared, Felicity was still counting down the days until her promise to him ended. She was going to leave after one year and he would lose her forever. She deserved to have the life out there waiting for her, too bad it simply did not include him. 

Trying to mask his disappointment Oliver does the only thing he feels he can do. He stands up and pastes a smirk on his face, as he looms over her, boxing her in with an arm on each side. “Well if you ever want my help with certain _experiences_ during your limited time here, you know I’m more than willing to help you out Felicity.” His face is so close to hers, their noses almost touching. Before Felicity is able to respond, he flashes her a smug grin and walks off.

***

Felicity kicks the couch out of frustration as she waits for Oliver to come back. He’d been avoiding her for the past week, that much was obvious. Felicity grudgingly admitted to herself that prior to his little vanishing act they’d been pretty much inseparable. They had all their meals together, he’d train (shirtless of course) while she coded. The man even had the gall to practice his sword fighting (shirtless once again), swinging his sword around in front of her while she tapped away on her keyboard. At night they’d watch TV and chatter about nothing for hours before going to sleep. All this was before their conversation about their past. After that conversation Oliver had all but vanished from her life. Waking up and leaving before her, only to return after she’d gone to bed. 

It didn’t take Felicity long to work out that he was having a big old sulk about her comment on leaving after a year. Felicity kicked the sofa again, her anger level rising. Of course he would take it personally even though he’d promise he wouldn’t be upset about her choosing to leave. When would he realize this wasn’t about her feelings for him but it was about her losing her entire life due to her father’s crazy notions? What did Oliver expect? For her to stay here forever and play Queen when he ascended to Ra’s? They weren’t even a real couple anyway. The whole thing was messed up and Felicity felt overwhelmingly exasperated at herself for being upset about him. This was what she wanted right? She had the token and he was leaving her alone and abandoning all that _meant to be_ nonsense. This was exactly what she wanted. Only why was she so miserable?

Wiping an angry tear from her cheek Felicity snuggles down into the couch where Oliver slept each night, pulling the covers up to her neck. Let him try to ignore her when he finds her in his sleeping space. If he did ignore her then she’d know just how truly resentful he was about giving her the token and she could bury their burgeoning friendship once and for all. 

***

Miserably Oliver creeps into their bedroom and makes his way to his couch. It was all like a bad dream that had snuck up on him from nowhere. He’d totally fucked this up and somehow he was more miserable than he’d ever been in his life. He and Felicity were going so well before they ended up in this weird place, mainly due to his actions.

Oliver couldn’t, didn’t want to retrace where it all blew up in his face. He had childishly started it because he couldn’t bear the thought of her leaving and even if he came crawling back he didn’t think Felicity was going to forgive him. Especially after he promised her there would be no hard feelings on his part about her choosing to leave. 

He’s about to drop himself on the couch when he does a double take and sees Felicity snuggled in his space, wearing a vicious look on her face. Her small figure, coupled with the charmingly angry little glare was too much and he couldn’t hold back his smile.

“I think you’re sleeping in the wrong place.” He points to the bed and smiles, “Your bed is over there.”

Oliver hears something being muttered along the lines of _stupid dumb smile_ before Felicity addresses him. “I’ve decided it’s not fair for you to sleep on the couch every night so we are going to take turns. You can have the bed tonight.” 

“Felicity I’m not going to make you sleep on the couch and take the bed,” Oliver laughs. “Come on, don’t pick a fight, just go to your bed and sleep.” 

“I’m not picking a fight,” Felicity buries herself into the couch even more to make her point. “I just think we should both get a turn on the bed. Your turn tonight, I’m going to sleep.” She glares at him and proceeds to pull the covers over her head, signaling the end of this particular discussion. 

Oliver watches her disappear under the covers and lets out a big sigh. Now they had descended to fighting over trivial things. This was beginning to look like a real marriage by the minute. He chuckles at this notion.

Without saying a word he lifts the Felicity bundle, blankets and all off the couch and walks over to deposit her on the bed.

Felicity unwinds herself from the covers, glares at him and tries to make a beeline for the couch again. He grabs her arm gently to stop her.

“Felicity I’m not letting you sleep on the couch. Why are you trying to be difficult tonight?” 

“I’m not being difficult, just fair,” Felicity glares at him and tries to push him away in order to get back to the couch. He holds onto both of her arms to try and stop her. Felicity struggles and tries to push at him a second time, huffing in frustration at the obvious weight and strength advantage he has over her. Oliver responds by lifting her onto the bed again.

Felicity flails around and makes a big fuss. Knowing that she can’t over power him, Felicity tickles his abs in a bid to gain the upper hand. Oliver, whom she did not expect to be ticklish writhes around while still holding onto her, causing them both to fall onto the bed with Felicity on her back and Oliver landing neatly on top of her. 

His eyes widen as he scrambles to take his weight off her. Felicity quickly wraps her legs around his waist to stop him from escaping. 

“Fe-lic-it-ee,” he groans in frustration as he gazes down at her. Her cheeks are pink and she’s smiling at him victoriously. Their bodies are pressed together with Oliver balancing both arms on either side of her shoulders to keep his weight off her. Felicity grins and wraps her legs around him a little tighter, as if she wasn’t driving him crazy enough already. 

“Fe-lic-it-ee,” he sighs gazing at her helplessly. Their faces were a mere inch apart, their noses almost touching.

Felicity lifts her head slightly and nuzzles her nose against his. “That’s how I imagine you’d say my name if we ever did non platonic things.”

“Felicity!” Oliver shakes his head in disbelief despite trying not to smile. She really was everything and too much all at the same time.

“You were a jerk to me this week,” Felicity says accusingly, hitting him on the shoulder with her arm. “I thought we were friends. You said you understood why I had to leave after a year but that we’d remain friends. Then you go off and act like a jerk all week.” 

She huffs at him and looks away. Oliver lifts one arm, nudging her cheek gently to get her to look at him again.

“I’m sorry,” he says softy. “I handled that poorly. I’m really sorry. Can we start over?” 

“What if I don’t want to start over?” Felicity challenges. Oliver’s face sinks at this statement. “What if I want to start where we left off?”

“We can start anywhere you want Felicity.” He beams at her, all stupidly heart eyed again and Felicity feels a rush of joy at seeing her old Oliver back. _He’s not your Oliver, you don’t want him to be your Oliver_ , the little voice in her head mocks her but she ignores it. 

“No more brooding! No more avoiding me. Don’t be a jerk and try to understand why I want to leave okay?” Felicity wriggles crossly as she makes her demands. Oliver wraps his arms around her shoulder and nods to appease her.

“I’m sorry Felicity. I do understand. I just needed time to accept that it wasn’t personal, you wanting to leave.” He strokes a stray curl on her face before twirling it around his finger and moving it out of the way. “Now will you please sleep on the bed?”

“I’ve been thinking,” Felicity muses. Her body is no longer tense and even though her legs are still wrapped around him, they abandon their vice like grip. “This bed is huge. Why don’t we just sleep on it together? We didn’t know each other back then but we do now. It seems silly for you to squeeze onto that couch when there is a perfectly good huge bed to sleep on. 

“Are you…are you sure?” Oliver asks, wondering how on earth he was going to handle sharing a bed with Felicity every night. 

“I’m sure,” Felicity grins at him. “Come on let’s go to sleep.” Felicity stretches out her arms from under him and wriggles, clearly enjoying herself.

Oliver lets out a choking sound as her core briefly brushes past his cock. 

“Oh yeah I should release you huh? You’re hard again. Is that like thing in general or just a me thing?”

“Felicity,” Oliver says her name in a chastising manner. 

“You say that a lot. You like calling out my name don’t you?” She wiggles again from under him and Oliver lets out a strangled groan. Felicity says these things so easily and with abandon, he can’t help wondering if they were calculated to fluster him or if she simply has no filter and likes to regale anything that comes into her head. Both were very plausible possibilities.

“Felicity, I’m not having this conversation with you right now in this position.” He shakes his head at her.

“Fine but I mean it! I want the lowdown on what’s going on with you down there.” She gestures towards his crotch, her hand about to fly there again. Well accustomed by now to Felicity’s tendency to get handsy, Oliver catches said hand before she could torture him again. 

“Felicity,” he waves a finger disapprovingly at her. “What did I say about having this conversation while I’m on top of you?”

“Some other time?” Felicity asks hopefully. 

“Maybe,” Oliver tells her sternly as he crawls off her. He lifts her up and places her on the side of the bed where she normally sleeps. “Be good and don’t cause anymore trouble.”

 ***

Oliver finishes brushing his teeth and makes his way tentatively to the bed he’s about to share with Felicity. He was filled with equal parts of joy and dread. Joy because well who wouldn’t want to share a bed with Felicity? Dread because it was Felicity and there was no one who had a greater capacity to cause mischief than her when she put her mind to it. 

She might just bring on his death with her hijinks before the year was out. Then he wouldn’t need to worry about missing her when she leaves.

As he strips off his shirt he spies Felicity eyeing him from her side of the bed, an impertinent grin on her face as she shows her appreciation for his body. Not wishing to get into another battle with her (albeit a jovial one), a battle he was likely to lose, Oliver doesn’t say anything. He climbs into bed and gives Felicity a quick peck on the forehead before turning to his side, facing away from her. 

“To answer your question Felicity, it’s only hard when you’re around and always hard when you’re around. Goodnight.” He switches off the light on his side of the bed and smiles a satisfied smile to himself in the dark.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you liked that! I rewatched a bunch of Olicity scenes and scenes from my chinese series in my attempt to write this! Olicitising things is fun but challenging! 
> 
> hehe I wonder what our couple will get up to next?


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi Guys!
> 
> I didn't intend to go there but this chapter is terribly smutty. In terms of the progression of their relationship and their journey together I felt like the story needed this chapter.
> 
> The explicit stuff happens in the last third of the chapter so you can just skip that bit if that kind of thing offends you! You'll get a fair idea of where they are headed in the first 2/3 of the chapter so you don't need all that smuttiness if it's not your thing! 
> 
> ***
> 
> For storytelling purposes let's assume the contraception aspect has been dealt with offscreen! There will be no babies in this story! I love Olicitots but not in this story as Felicity is very young herself here so no babies in this story!

“You’re good to go. I’ve disabled all the booby traps. Just walk in, plug in the drive like I showed you, wait for it to copy and get out.”

“I can’t say I’m used to things being this easy Felicity.”

“Hurry up, just because they haven’t been alerted doesn’t mean they won’t show up at some point.”

“I am most impressed darling. Perhaps I made a mistake not looking into this years ago.”

“Well Father I was still in school a few years ago. There would probably have been more hiccups if we tried this back then.”

“Felicity the information has been copied. Removing the drive and leaving now.” 

“Incoming hostiles at the right entrance. They are armed with guns. Shoot that magnetic arrow I added to your pack and that should take care of them.” 

“Hey it works! They are all disabled.” 

“Of course it works. I told you it would work. Did you not trust me? You doubted the mighty magnet arrow?” 

“Of course I trust you. I…I’ve just never used a magnetic arrow before.”

“I’ll let that slide. Signing off now. Come back soon both of you.”

“Did you really make those yourself darling?”

“No father I bought them off the internet.” 

“Felicity is this your way of being impertinent? I was merely asking a question as I am amazed you are able to make such contraptions.” 

“I suppose the apple didn’t fall far from the League of Assassins tree did it Father?” 

“Felicity I take issue with you attitude.” 

“Kidding! Relax Father! This is what I’m like on comms. I haven’t called myself your Overlord out of respect for you.”

“She really does call herself our Overlord when she’s on comms My Lord.” 

“One really does feel one’s age after interacting with young people.”

“You don’t look a day over a century old Father.” 

*** 

“You’re back!” Felicity hurls herself at Oliver gleefully. He doesn’t know what to think as he smiles to himself and hugs her back. It seemed like she missed him as much as he missed her. The location of Nanda Parbat meant that missions always took extra long when factoring in travel times. It was three nights since he’d last seen Felicity. Oliver closes his eyes as he hugs her tighter. What was he going to do when she left this place for good? He knew there was no way he could stop seeing her on a permanent basis. Even if they never amounted to anything he would always want to be part of her life. Felicity was still the little sunbeam he needed no matter what role she played in his life. His only consolation was that he suspected his feelings, at least when it came to the friendship side of things were not entirely unrequited. Judging by Felicity’s reaction she missed him as much as he missed her. 

“How was the mission with Father?” Felicity asks, pulling back a little to get a good look at him. Ra’s had suddenly developed a new zest for thrill and danger and had participated in several missions to _try out my Felicity’s technology_ as he put it, much to Felicity’s amusement.

“Odd,” Oliver makes a face as Felicity looks at him questioningly.

“I had a very well defined relationship with him since the moment I arrived here. I was used to it. Now it seems like he’s become a different person. He doesn’t treat me the way he treats you but he’s more…” 

“Talkative?” Felicity supplies helpfully. “You know he’s always enjoyed his long speeches and lectures. I think he’s just trying to engage in conversation with you in the same manner that’s all.” 

“He loves the comms,” Oliver admits, a small amused smile forming on his face. “I think he uses it more than necessary just because he likes it.” 

“Oh yes he loves the comms,” Felicity groans. “I have to work so hard to subtly stop him from launching into one of his speeches when he’s on them. Which is difficult for me as you know I’m also chatty on comms and most of the time I end up saying something that makes him want to lecture me.”

“Thank you.” Oliver places his arms around her shoulders and he’s giving her that look again. The totally enamoured _I don’t see anyone but you in this world_ look that always makes her willpower crumble a little. 

“Thank you for what?” Felicity grins at him; trying to lighten the intensity he was bringing a bit. She missed him and was glad to have him back so they could resume their old ways. This side of Oliver she always found a little overwhelming. 

“Thank you for being you and being brilliant. I don’t think I’ve ever gotten through a string of missions unscathed before. I don’t know what I’d do without you.” The words were loaded and they both knew it, judging by the way Felicity’s eyes flickered away from his gaze. He really didn’t know what he would do without her. Oliver had gotten used to having her around, in the best of ways. Even if nothing ever developed between them he could very well go on like this forever and die a happy man. He just wanted her near him.

“You’re Father’s right hand man and a warrior in your own right Oliver. I know I’ve been helpful and made things run more efficiently but don’t sell yourself short.” Felicity smiles at him fondly and pats his chest, her hand lingering on his pecs slightly longer than it should because she was a bit of a perve and couldn’t help herself. 

“I mean it Felicity. I’m really grateful for everything you’ve given me.” He was at it in full force today. The intense gaze, the heart eyes. It was like he hadn’t quite left behind his serous mission mode and was now focusing all that intensity on her.

“How are you planning to thank me? With your body?” Felicity quips back, desperately trying to stop Oliver from getting carried away.

“Felicity!” That did the trick, Oliver looked positively scandalized by her comment. 

“Just saying that’s all. We live together, sleep together. Have you gotten any since I came into your life? All that repressed energy unable to make it’s way out. Or has it? Is that why you spend so long in the bathroom? Do you want to know what I’ve been up to when you’re away and I’m not on comms?”

“Felicity, if you’re trying to goad me into reacting you’re doing a fine job of it. I’ve missed you. Why can’t you just be good?” Oliver shakes his head at her sternly. 

“You’re always asking me to be good. Am I a good girl in your fantasies or am I bad?” Felicity places both hands in his chest and smiles a lazy, seductive smile at him. “Don’t you want to know how if I’m innocent under all this bad behavior?” 

“Felicity…” there was a warning tone to his voice, one that sent a delicious shiver down Felicity’s spine. Finally she was getting somewhere and the big bad assassin was making his way out. Maybe he’d ravish her like they did in the novels.

“If you’re going to say my name like that you really should just grab me and kiss me.”

Her tone was challenging and coupled with the devilish look in her eyes and playful smile, Oliver couldn’t help himself. He all but lunges at her, his lips capturing hers, crushing against hers with the kind of fervor she had only read about in her secret stash of novels. 

Oliver pushes her onto their bed, Felicity kissing him back with equal passion. The constant teasing, the flirting, her attempts to outrage him. This was what she wanted. For him to give into their obvious attraction. To stop revering her, stop those worshipping looks, stop teasing her only to hold back and retreat. 

Oliver holds onto her tightly, his limbs pinning her down as he continues to kiss her with an almost ruthless abandon. Felicity’s body melts under his and she lets out a soft whimper, which jolts him from his moment of reckless passion.

Oliver pulls back from her, leaving Felicity looking slightly bewildered by his sudden application of the breaks.

“You are the best thing to have ever happened to me and that’s why I can’t take advantage of you,” Oliver whispers before kissing her on the forehead. His body was still pressed against hers and she could feel his _only hard for her_ cock pressed dangerously close to her core. 

“Oliver we’re both grown adults,” Felicity is about to protest but he silences her with a gentle kiss on the lips, followed by another one on the forehead. He had a thing for forehead kisses much to Felicity’s frustration. 

“Please?” he pleads softly and suddenly Felicity realizes that he’s afraid of her. For some reason Oliver, Al Sah Him, Heir to the Demon, man about town is not ready for her.

“Fine I won’t tease you anymore,” Felicity pouts grudgingly, looking away. This wasn’t how it went in the novels. The big bad hot assassin was not supposed to go running in fear from the inexperienced virgin.

Oliver moves his head so as to catch her gaze again. “I’ve missed you. Can we spend some time together?”

“Depends on how you want to spend time together,” Felicity’s tone is playful again. She did miss him very much too. She’d grown accustomed to his shirtless presence. 

“Anything you want,” Oliver smiles at her dotingly before adding, “Except the naughty stuff.” 

*** 

Anything Felicity wanted turned out to be the Stargate movie, assorts crisps and a bottle of red wine, of which she consumed more than half because Oliver, being typical Oliver, knew she loved red wine and had let her have more of it. 

Surprisingly though Felicity recalled Oliver falling asleep first. The movie finally did him in, lulling him into a peaceful slumber, even thought he tried to watch it for her sake. Felicity didn’t recall much except that at some point during the night she stumbled to the bathroom to brush her teeth and fell into bed. 

Which led her to her current; well she wouldn’t exactly call it a predicament. A predicament for Oliver maybe but she was more than happy to roll with it, although Felicity was thankful she was the first one awake because goodness knows what guilt trip Oliver would subject himself to if she had been asleep and he was the one to wake up and find them in this rather compromising position. 

By compromising she meant that she had no clothes on and Oliver was currently spooning her tightly with his hard cock wedged between her legs through his very thin boxer shorts. His arms were wrapped around her body with one hand holding onto her boob.

In her drunken haze last night she must have forgotten she was in Nanda Parbat and had stripped down to sleep like she did when she lived by herself. Frak what was she going to do now? She certainly didn’t mind the position she was in but Oliver was going to have some sort of internal struggle with himself once he discovered he’d accidentally coped a feel and a rub in his sleep. Perplexed Felicity wrinkled her brow and laid very still, despite Oliver’s hand growing extremely warm on her boob. Goodness why did he latch onto it like it was a comforter of some sort? Still she didn’t mind. It was a tad warm but she’d never seen him sleep so deeply and peacefully before. If boob gripping helped him sleep she was all for it.

Felicity shuffles a little and Oliver responds by nuzzling her neck. Felicity knew with a certainty that if she could see his face now he was probably smiling a dopey little smile in his sleep. That was it. They really needed to deal with this. Oliver was the one who asked her for one year to see if she would change her mind and yet he was hell-bent on tormenting himself and effectively denying himself any chance of progression with her. She may as well leave and invite him to visit her in Starling at the rate they were going. Sometimes she wondered if he subconsciously enjoyed living in perpetual heart eyed torment. If anyone was going to steer this ship it had to be her.

Felicity wiggles and pulls away every so slightly. On cue Oliver tightens his grip and pushes further into her. Felicity shifts a bit more vigorously this time causing Oliver to slide his body along to prevent her from escaping, all while his arms remained wrapped around her, that hand still clinging onto her boob for dear life. 

“Felicity?” his sleep-laden voice rumbles in her ear, just before she feels him freeze around her. 

“Good Morning Oliver,” Felicity replies cheerfully, timing in her head how long it would take him to officially freak out.

“I am so sorry. I don’t know what happened,” he says slowly before gently extracting himself from her. Felicity turns around to face him, her eyes watching him inquisitively to see what he was going to do next. 

“I…I didn’t mean…I am so sorry. I took advantage of you in your sleep. I’m really sorry.” He looks so stoic and apologetic; Felicity fights hard to suppress her smile.

Feigning disappointment with a hint of outrage she gazes at him innocently. “You did take advantage of me. Do you know what it was like to wake up and have your large manparts between my legs? I’ve never felt so violated before. You need to make it up to me!” 

“I don’t know what happened Felicity. You have to believe I didn’t do this on purpose. We’ve shared a bed for months and nothing like this has ever happened. I’m so sorry Felicity. I’ll do anything to make it up to you.” His face was full of dread and they both knew what demand he expected her to make. 

“I know of something you can do make it up to me,” Felicity replies, her eyes sparkling with mirth and delight.

“How can I make it up to you?” Oliver feels a sharp, stabbing pang through his heart. He never thought she’d be this elated at the prospect of leaving him.

“You can let me take advantage of you,” Felicity retorts gleefully as she crawls on top of him and pushes him onto his back. She’s straddles him and bounces in victory. 

“Felicity,” Oliver tries his best to maintain his morose stance that he had mastered a moment ago, however the relief of her not asking to leave early, plus the sight of a nude Felicity bouncing joyfully on top of him rendered it impossible for him to feel anything but complete and utter joy. 

“Let’s give you a reason to keep calling my name in all sorts of ways huh?” Felicity stops bouncing and flops down, pressing her chest against his. This woman was going to be the death of him. Oliver wasn’t sure how he was going to survive the remaining time with her and keep his sanity in tact. There was only so much a man could take and asking him to be noble while this glorious creature was naked and sliding around on his torso was just plain cruel. 

“Felicity,” he sighs again although there is a small hint of a smile on his face. 

“I’m doing this for the both of us,” Felicity informs solemnly. 

“And how is this going to help us?” Oliver relaxes and folds his arms across the back of his head as he watches her. He’d lost the battle and the war. May as well just enjoy the show while Felicity did her victory lap. 

“See I think the idea of me leaving in a year has done a number on you but if you think about it, all you’re doing is stopping the natural progression of our relationship. You asked me for a year to see if anything could develop between us. Well how can it if you won’t explore all facets of our relationship. I told you before there are so many things I haven’t been able to experience and now I’m asking if you’ll help me experience them with you.” 

She pauses and squeezes his cheeks, admiring his dopey but oh so handsome face, “I get to experience everything that life has to offer safely with you and you can try to show me there is more to us that my father’s arranged marriage.”

“You mean you’re giving me the chance to sex you up so hard that maybe you won’t leave?” The words fly out of his mouth before he has a chance to stop them and to his delight, Felicity beams at him, her eyes gleaming wickedly.

“More power to you and more benefits to me if that’s how things turn out.” She pauses before shrugging innocently, “Of course if you’d rather be noble and live out this year tragically I can always just go to Starling and have an encounter with someone…” 

Before she has a chance to finish her sentence Oliver rolls her onto her back and pins her down possessively. “Felicity I would very much like for you to be mine.” 

*** 

“So how is this going to work? Are you going to grab me by the hair, back me into a wall and deflower me?” 

Oliver starts coughing violently as he tries his best to keep down the mouthful of pancakes he had been chewing on. As his mouth was full and he was too busy keeping the food in and stop the coughing, there was no scope for his trademark admonishing _Felicity_ , which had now became his standard response to almost everything Felicity suggested. Oliver still hadn’t figured out if this was Felicity’s lack of filter or whether she was having fun at his expense. 

“There…will…be…no…deflowering…of…any…kind,” Oliver stutters after he’s choked down the mouthful of pancake and hurriedly gulps down some juice. “What did you get up to in your teen years exactly?” His eyes narrow as he tries to work out what Felicity could have learnt at the prestigious all girls’ boarding school Ra’s sent her to. 

“Oh you know what those boarding schools are like,” Felicity waves him off casually. She contemplates confessing outright about her stash of saucy novels and proposing that they re –enact them but knowing Oliver he would never go for it right off the bat. She really had to ease him into it. 

“Evidently I don’t,” Oliver responds calmly. He suspects that under all the jokey bravado, Felicity wasn’t quite as worldly as she made out to be; or rather she had done all her research thoroughly but would probably get a rude shock when she realized real life worked differently. 

He began to understand why Ra’s was hell bent on this arranged marriage. Ra’s had spent years making up for Felicity’s traumatic youth and that over protectiveness had spiraled to a point where he was too afraid to let Felicity explore the real world with it’s ugliness and disappointments, so he married her off to Oliver whom he felt was still under his control. 

“I’m serious Felicity, this is a big deal. I want you to feel safe and sure. You shouldn’t be flippant about this.” 

“Well I’ve read that the first time is going to hurt anyway so we may as well go all in and do the whole hot assassin deflowers virginal bride storyline.” She looks up, a beautiful shy smile on her face as a faint blush spreads across her cheeks. “It’s one of my favourite smutty novels.” Suddenly Felicity covers her face with her hands before peeking out at him from between two fingers. “I don’t know why I told you that but if we’re going to do this you may as well know everything about me, warts and all. Well I don’t have warts, like not the actual condition caused by the human papillomavirus, and even if I did I’m sure a soak in the Lazarus Pit would cure that right away. What I mean is that you should know a few things about me, such as my smutty novel collection that I enjoy. Did you know I’ve watched porn too? Quite a bit actually although I enjoy the novels so much more as my imagination is very vivid…” 

Oliver strides over and cuts off her rant with a soft kiss, causing Felicity to blush beet red and bury her face in his rock hard abs. She nuzzled the ridges of his abs with her nose and hid her face refusing to look at him. Ugh, why was everything so awkward. She was doing so well before they decided to sit down and negotiate on sex. 

“Felicity,” he says softly, kissing the top of her head as she was still hiding her face in his stomach. “I promise you we can re enact any scene you want from any novel down the track but you need to trust me and let me handle things this time.”

Felicity looks up and nods, her clear blue eyes shining at him with all the faith and trust in the world. 

***

“Ooh naked and in a blindfold, kinky,” Felicity remarks as Oliver leads her into their bedroom. They’d gone about their day like normal. Well they had tried to go about their day like normal, ignoring the nervous tension in the air until they finally ended up here. There was a sense of relief as Oliver carefully guided her along. After tonight, there would be no more wondering, no more fantasizing, no more longing.

“It’s just for a surprise. Don’t get your hopes up too high Ms. Smoak, save them for next time,” he whispers into Felicity’s ear and kisses the nape of her neck causing Felicity to feel all sorts of wonderful tingly sensations all over her body. Slowly Oliver undid the blindfold. 

Candles. They were everywhere. Hundreds of them. He’d turn off all the electric bulbs and only candles illuminated the room. Naked flames were burning cheerfully all over the room, which was lined with a probably flammable carpet and equally flammable drapes. 

“It’s a fire hazard,” Felicity exclaims before she could stop herself as she stares at the candles. “We’re going to set Father’s palace on fire if one of us hits a candle with a foot. And by one of us I mostly mean me.”

“Shhh it’s going to be fine. Nothing is going to burn down. You’re going to be fine,” Oliver says soothingly before taking her hand and leading her towards the bed.

Felicity squints trying to make out what looked suspiciously like silver and gold foil bits, littered all over the bed. Upon closer inspection she realizes they were Hershey's Kisses and claps her hands together in delight as she lets out a burst of joyful laughter. Since the very first moment she met him, Oliver had been a real sop and somewhat sentimental. This however completely took her by surprise and she adored him all the more for it. She was about to take a ride on the wild side with his naked lethal assassin self and he had covered her bed with Hershey Kisses. 

“I was fully expecting rose petals from you but this is amazing.” Felicity picks up a Hershey kiss to examine it before turning to hug Oliver who scoops her into his arms. 

“Well I was going to go with rose petals but I know how much you love your food. The Hershey's Kisses on the bed represent every kiss that I’ve ever wanted to kiss you and more.” Oliver grins at her shamelessly, embracing his inner corniness as he preens proudly. 

Felicity stands up on her tippy toes and kisses him, a gentle yet provocative kiss. Oliver had a tendency to get sidetrack by romance of it all and she didn’t want that to happen tonight. It turns out she had nothing to worry about. He kissed her back hungrily, capturing her lips with his. Felicity twines her arms around his neck and Oliver scoops her up, depositing her onto the bed. He lavishes a few more urgent kisses on her lips, their tongues dueling before he pulls away and hovers on top of her. He starts making his way down her body, leaving a trail of kisses along the way. The nape of her neck, her collarbones, the tops of her breasts. 

She could feel everything, it were as if every nerve ending in her body had woken up. Every kiss, every prickle of stubble sent overwhelming sensations tingling down her spine. He takes his time worshipping her breasts before making his way down to her abdomen, her belly button and then…

Felicity’s eyes widen as she tries to clamp her legs shut, however Oliver holds them open, gently but firmly. “You’re not going down there are you?” she yelps looking somewhat bewildered. “I thought you were just going to, you know, go all in.” 

“Felicity, trust me,” Oliver whispers, kissing right at the top of her slit.

“I’m not ready for you to go there,” Felicity squeaks trying to close her legs again. “I thought you were just going to shove it in to get it over and done with and then we could have some real fun. Can’t you just shove it in?”

“Felicity honey,” Oliver lifts his head and aligns his face with hers. He lets go of her legs and strokes her cheek lightly, taking time to remove a stray curl which had found it’s way on her face. “Do you trust me?” 

He’s gazing at her now, his eyes full adoration and reverence like she’s the most precious thing in the world. 

Felicity nods gingerly, expecting him to make his way down again but to her surprise he doesn’t. Oliver reaches over and plucks a handful of chocolates strewn nearby and hands them to her.

“You eat this chocolate and let me take care of you and then I’ll shove it in like you so desperately want.” The teasing smile that accompanies his sentences does more to reassure her than anything else he could have done. This was Oliver, her Oliver. 

Felicity unwraps and pops a chocolate into her mouth, focusing on the sweet candy to avoid another attack of self-consciousness. She feels Oliver’s breath on her thighs again as he makes his way down.

His stubble tickles a little as he kisses her thighs, slowly inching his way towards her folds. Then without warning he dived in. His tongue massaged her clit slowly and deliberately causing her to moan with pleasure before she threw away the handful of chocolates she was holding onto. Then he began to suck on her clit, making out with it the way he kissed her, sucking, nipping, massaging, only stopping occasionally to use his tongue to tease and torment her entrance before turning back to lavish his attention on her now very swollen clit. The cycle of licking, sucking and gentle nipping continued until Felicity was practically in tears with pleasure, pushing herself against his face and begging him to just take her, anything to resolve this fire that was burning inside of her. 

Without warning Oliver plunges in a finger, followed by another one before sucking hard on her clit, causing Felicity to convulse with delicious waves of pleasure as her orgasm descended on her, causing her senses to spin.

She was a whimpering mess by the time she came down from her orgasm. Oliver licking her gently down there before he looks up at her, smug male pride in its full glory. Felicity was too sated to care. This was infinitely better than any deflowering, hair yanking fantasy she had. 

“You okay,” he asks, victorious smile gone and replaced with a gentle look of care as he strokes her cheek. Felicity nods and pulls him towards her for a kiss. She could taste herself on him. There was something incredibly stimulating about that. Felicity holds his face with both hands and kisses with abandon before pausing to look into his eyes. No words were needed, as Oliver understood what she was asking him to do. 

He straddles her and parts her legs with his knee. He gently captures her hands and pins them down on either side, smirking as he did this. Felicity blushes, acknowledging his nod to her little fantasy. She was pinned down and helpless. Sort of. 

Oliver smiles at her indulgently and shakes his head as he rubs his throbbing cock against the wetness between her legs before bending to kiss her hungrily. He lets go of her hands and Felicity wraps them around him, pulling him closer to her, urging him to take the next step. 

He caresses her body tenderly and pulls back to look at her, checking wordlessly with her one more time. Felicity looks up and smiles at him, pupils blown wide. This felt so right.

Oliver moves her legs further apart with his knees and then suddenly he was inside her. It hurt and Felicity cried out involuntarily, closing her eyes to combat against the pain. Oliver stills inside her and kisses her softly. “I’m sorry honey. I’m sorry I hurt you.” He tries to ease back but Felicity grabs hold of him.

“I’m okay. Really I am. Keep going. Please?” Felicity realized she meant the words she said. Despite the pain she didn’t want him to stop. She wanted to feel him; she wanted to experience this with him.

He kisses her neck and massages her breasts with his hands before he starts moving again. Gentle strokes. In and out. In and out. Over and over again as he lavishes kisses all over her body. Somewhere along the way the pain turned into pleasure and Felicity found herself urging him to drive deeper into her. She felt so wonderfully full, the pain had faded and his cock was stretching her walls in the most pleasurable of ways. She needed it harder and faster. 

Felicity moved her hips up, slamming them against him, telling him wordlessly that she was ready for more. She was ready for him to fuck her. Oliver understood her perfectly and began to thrust into her with abandon. Pulling out, slamming in, pulling out, slamming in. She sobs his name when her release comes flowing through after a particularly brutal thrust, sending her body into spasm after spasm of pure ecstasy. Oliver clings onto her tight, pulling her into him as he allows himself to follow, plunging his cock deep into her convulsing walls as he empties himself inside her.

***

“Well that happened,” Felicity smiles sheepishly, almost unable to look him in the eye. She who was usually so shameless found the intimacy of the moment almost too much to bear. He was still inside her; they were joined as one in the most intimate of ways.

“I’m glad it did,” Oliver is positively radiant as he beams at her and kisses her on the nose. “I didn’t hurt you too much did I?” 

Felicity shakes her head and they gaze at each other for a few more seconds. Oliver kisses her, a lingering kiss before reluctantly pulling out of her. He places a blanket over her before sliding out of bed as he heads to the bathroom to clean up. Felicity lazes on the bed, spent and unable to move. Who knew that sex could be so relaxing. She was never moving out of this bed.

Felicity is wonderfully relaxed and loose limbed when she feels something warm between her legs. She looks up to find Oliver wiping her down there with what looks like a warm cloth and a bowl of water.

“Sleep,” he orders as he continues to wipe down there lightly, taking care not to hurt her. “Don’t mind me.”

The affection behind the gesture overwhelms her and Felicity finds herself staring at him, tears threatening to form in her eyes. Oliver places the water bowl and cloth on the floor and scurries onto the bed, pulling her into his arms, kissing her all over reverently. 

“You’ve had a big night. Go to sleep baby,” he whispers in her ear as he wraps his arms tightly around her. Hearing a little sniffle, Oliver noses her neck and adds playfully, “You’ve got to recover so I can yank your hair and fuck you roughly against a wall next time.”

This earns him a ringing laugh from her, a sound that he now realizes he lives for.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *whispers with her head hung in shame* Anybody still there or did you all run off screaming in horror at my terrible writing?
> 
> I am going to hide my face out of embarrassment for the rest of the month now! 
> 
> ***
> 
> In terms of housekeeping I had to increase my chapter count again but I have mapped out the last 2 chapters and we are well on track to the end of this story!
> 
> Some action next chapter! No not that kind of action! =P 
> 
> That kind of action already took place in this chapter! I mean actual action!


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi Guys!!!!!
> 
> Thank you soooooo much for all your lovely comments, kudos and encouragement on the last chapter! I truly appreciate it so so so much! I was sooooo stressed about the last chapter but you guys were all so wonderful to me! *huggles*
> 
> Hehe I was supposed to bake scones for my family today but I was due to update for you guys so I did that instead! 
> 
> I hope you enjoy it! Only one more chapter to go with this universe's Olicity! I am so thrilled that you guys like them! Seriously I was expecting crickets and my regulars only! 
> 
> ***
> 
> Disclaimer: My grasp of physics is fuzzy but let's assume Oliver is a SUPER ninja who can defy physics okies!

“Oliver stop biting my arse,” Felicity commands, lying on her stomach, as Oliver nips at her pert derrière playfully. “You’re going to slip one of these days, bite too hard and leave a row of teeth marks in it.” 

“Who’s going to see them?” he challenges, taking another play bite out of the right cheek. “Only I get to see them.”

Felicity lets out a huff and rolls her eyes at him. “Is that seriously all you are going to do all day? Lie there and gnaw on my butt cheeks?”

“But they’re so firm and round but soft at the same time,” Oliver answers, staring at the round moons with absolute fascination, giving them a squeeze with both hands before rubbing them with satisfaction. “They’re so flawless and smooth. Makes me just want to squeeze and take a bite.” He bends down and takes another soft bite this time on the left cheek. Felicity had her quirky fantasies about him accosting her and fucking her roughly in about five hundred different ways. A fantasy he had made come true this morning when he snuck up on her and fucked her from behind while she was too busy coding to notice him. 

His thing was to sit around and play with her arse cheeks. They were working on meeting in the middle somewhere.

“Oliver are we not going to do anything productive today but stay in bed while you chew on my butt?” Felicity props herself up, peers over her shoulder and levels him with a disapproving look. Oliver responds by slapping one of her cheeks firmly; causing the round, supple bauble to bounce a little. That arse really was a thing of beauty. He’d never seen anything like it. It could almost rival Felicity’s adorableness. Almost.

“You need to put some panties on if you want me to stop,” he says grudgingly.

“You ripped my panties to shreds this morning,” Felicity laughs at him. “I’m being serious Oliver I want to have a serious conversation and I can’t do it when you’ve devoted your whole being to my butt.”

The words _serious conversation_ capture Oliver’s attention right away as he scrambles up and hastily shoves a pillow to cover Felicity’s buttocks before flopping down on his stomach beside her. 

“It’s nothing bad,” Felicity assures him. They’ve come a long way since the early days of their unique marital circumstances but she understood Oliver’s insecurity in regards to her leaving and always did everything she could to alleviate his fears. In fact these days she didn’t want to think about leaving at all. There was a life out there, a life she hadn’t yet had a chance to live. Felicity knew this but she was embarking on a whole different journey with Oliver, one that was full of joy, passion, devoted friendship and so much happiness. Somehow giving this up felt wrong.

The relief on Oliver’s face tugs at her heartstrings and Felicity leans over to kiss him before continuing. “I suddenly realize that since I set foot back in Nanda Parbat, we’ve only ever stayed here and I’m getting a case of Palace fever, you know like cabin fever, except we’re in the Palace not a cabin.” Oliver bless him is propping his chin up with his hands and listening to her with an enamored look on his face. _Silly fool_ Felicity thinks fondly to herself. No one had ever looked at her like that and she was beginning to think no one will ever look at her like that. At least no one who could compare to him.

“So it occurred to me that we should travel. Together. You and me.” She grins at him, looking thoroughly delighted with her idea.

“Where were you thinking of going? I’ve always wanted to go somewhere with you. I’ve been all over the world on missions but never had a chance to let my guard down and enjoy a place. It was always in and out. I would love to see the world with you Felicity.” He meant every word of it. If only he had more than a year, there were so many places he wanted to go with her, so many things they could discover together, so many new memories to make. He couldn’t help feeling greedy. He was going to get his year and after that he was going to find a way to stay in her life. He just wished it didn’t have to be like that. He would give anything for a lifetime with Felicity.

“I was thinking of starting off small. Just to get away from here for a bit. Father has a property called the Lake House far away enough from here but still in Nanda Parbat. I can ask him to let us borrow it for a week; we can get away from here. Just you and me. In a cabin. I have novels about cabins.” 

“Let me guess I kidnap you, throw you over my shoulder and fuck you roughly in the cabin,” Oliver dead pans.

“How did you know?” Felicity beams at him looking rather excited by the prospect. Oliver gave a chortle, causing her to glare at him indignantly. 

“Felicity you do realise that half the time when I’m acting out these novels and trying to force you into submission, you maneuver yourself so that you end up on top of me. Which makes me wonder why you are so obsessed with these novels since you can be quite bossy in bed.” He tweaks her nose as she pouts at him. 

Nothing amused him more than when Felicity referred to her vast collection of novels which all basically comprised of the exact same story, retold in slightly different ways. Her love of these (frankly terrible sounding) novels was a constant source of hilarity for him. Felicity who could hack into anything and even steal drones (he’d watched her do it one night in 10 minutes to prove a point to Ra’s) was absolutely enthralled by these incredibly silly sounding stories. He supposed that big brain of hers needed some sort of down time from all its processing. 

“I like being on top,” she mutters looking disgruntled. 

“And I looooove anything that makes you happy as long as I get to bite that arse of yours.” Oliver shuffles closer to her, nuzzling her cheek in an attempt to get back into her good books. 

“If there’s a waterfall you can take me by the waterfall too,” Felicity quirks a mischievous eyebrow at him, deciding to stand her ground.

“You’re kidding? They have sex by a waterfall?”

“Under a waterfall,” Felicity nods at him with mock seriousness.

“170 IQ and you think having sex under a waterfall is realistic,” Oliver teases her, prompting Felicity to grab a pillow and whack him over the head repeatedly with it. 

***

“Felicity darling, happiness becomes you,” Ra’s is positively beaming at his daughter as he places a kiss on her cheek before pushing her back a bit to get a good look at her. She was utterly radiant, bright eyed and wearing an angelic smile, which told Ra’s Felicity wanted something from him.

Whatever it was he was more than happy to oblige. He’d always been a man of great conviction who wholeheartedly stood by any decision he made, however deep in his soul there were moments when Ra’s held a niggling doubt whether his decision to force Felicity back to Nanda Parbat to marry Al Sah Him had been the correct one. Felicity despite her loving heart and sunshiny exterior was the most unyielding and determined of all his daughters. Ra’s had considered the possibility that out of sheer determination; Felicity could devote every ounce of her being to resisting her marriage to Al Sah Him. 

Ra’s hadn’t dared give thought to what he would do if that had been the case. He wanted what he knew was best for Felicity but he did not want to be the cause of any genuine unhappiness for her. He knew his overprotectiveness had been a source of frustration for Felicity over the years but she was always such a content and cheery child. In his quiet moments of contemplation Ra’s sometimes wondered if he’d crossed a line in ordering her marriage to Al Sah Him.

Still here she stood in front of him, bursting with happiness, her eyes brimming with joy and some sort of mischief, living proof that he had made the correct decision. The heavens had not failed him on this. It was just as things should be.

“To what do I owe this visit Felicity? What favour is it you seek from me?”

“Father I’m offended you think I’m only here for a favour. Can’t a girl just visit her century old father to see how he is faring?” She looks like she’s about to burst out with laughter and although Ra’s tries very hard to concentrate on admonishing her in an appropriate way, he cannot control the smile that threatens to break out on his face. Oh how some things change so dramatically and yet still remained exactly the same. His Felicity was all grown up now, a married woman. Yet as he was looking at her Ra’s could see the impudent, sassy nine-year-old Felicity standing in front of him, always ready with an impertinent comeback to anything he said. 

“My dear whatever it is you seek from me, I assure you it is not in your best interests to insult your old father,” Ra’s scolds her anyway because Felicity really was incorrigible and should not be encouraged. 

“Oh Father you know I love you best,” Felicity clutches his arm and smiles a charming smile. She really hadn’t lost that playful demeanor he was so fond of. “I just can’t help making cracks about your age. Tell me the truth though wouldn’t you be concerned if I were to come in here all docile? Would you not have Oliver investigated to determine the cause of my loss of spirit?”

“There is such a thing as having too much spirit and personality Felicity,” Ra’s grumbles at her sternly before conceding to the fond smile that had been fighting it’s way out since she entered the room. He’d done his best to reprimand her.

“Let’s not quibble about that,” Felicity waves him off casually, bouncing excitedly as she tells him the reason why she has come to see him. “I was thinking Father, since I wish to be a filial daughter and obey your wishes in regards to my marriage to Oliver, I would like to ask you to lend us your lavish Lake House for a few days. I always loved camping at school and you remember how high strung I was in college, no time for fun, so Oliver wants to take me camping to look at the stars. Then I thought why camp when you can glamp and there is nothing that screams glamping than your Lake House Father, so may I pretty please borrow it?” 

Felicity tugs on his arm and looks at him beseechingly. She knew he wouldn’t say no, he never did, especially not over something as trivial as a property he owned. Still this was what she always did when she asked Father for a favour. It was a tradition of sorts. 

“I do not know what this glamping is you refer to Felicity and frankly I am too old to find out as you tell me often enough. It is my belief you are trying to observe nature while avoiding spending copious amounts of time exposed to nature.”

Felicity is just about to protest however Ra’s pats her fondly on the head. “You may borrow the Lake House for as long as you like my dear. Think of it as a reward for the excellent work both you and Al Sah Him completed on the last mission.”

“Oh thank you Father! Oliver is going to be so happy,” Felicity fist pumps and bounces happily on her heels causing Ra’s to do a little teasing of his own.

“I see you are greatly satisfied with the husband I picked for you after all your tantrums and tribulations. As you are often so fond of reminding me my dear child, I have lived and observed human nature for centuries. I have an inherent sixth sense when I see two people who are destined for each other. Yours was a match made by the heavens and that is why you are both besotted with each other.” Her Father actually had the gall to look smug. It was most unbecoming on someone dignified like him. 

“No need for the I told you sos Father,” Felicity rolls her eyes at him. “You got lucky with your wild match making scheme. I hope you don’t take this as a sign to start paring off other people with each other.”

Seeing a look of disapproval forming on Ra’s face, Felicity quickly tries to sooth him again. He’d just agreed to lend them the Lake House; she really shouldn’t be talking back to him. “I’m sorry for sassing you again Father.”

“Oliver is a pretty great person. I didn’t think he would be and I hated the idea of him and was furious with you at first but a lot of things have changed since then. He’s expanded my world and helped me grow so much. We are so very compatible and I am very happy. He’s soooooo …” Felicity’s voice trails off and Ra’s sees a dreamy look, full of affection on her face. 

“I am very glad to hear this directly from you darling,” Ra’s interrupts Felicity mid sentence. He knew his daughter had a penchant for babbling, remarkably quite similar to his own love of monologues (Felicity called them monologues and upon reflection Ra’s conceded to himself he did monologue a fair bit but children should be put in their place and he was not going to admit it to Felicity of all people), however there were some things a father did not wish to know about his child and there was no telling what Felicity might say if given the chance to continue. She will forever be the nine-year-old baby Ra’s sent to boarding school. He did not care for any accidental details about her relationship with Al Sah Him other than that she was content. 

“Felicity nothing brings me more joy than to see your happiness. It takes great maturity to open your heart to what you resist the most. I feel so much pride in seeing the person you have grown into.”

The relief and joy on her father’s face causes Felicity to feel slightly uncomfortable. What would he say when she handed in her token once the year was up? He thought she was content with her life here in Nanda Parbat and in some ways she was. Putting aside her seemingly simple yet incredibly complicated relationship with Oliver, Felicity had come to enjoy her life here. For the first time she felt like she had a greater purpose in her life. She wasn’t just Ra’s’ eccentric spoilt little princess. Although Felicity knew her father manipulated the situation and only let her participate in altruistic missions, she still felt a great sense of accomplishment with every successful one.

There was a part of Felicity that did not like to disappoint her father. Sure she had been mischievous in her youth but she always lived up to his expectations on everything that mattered. Still she couldn’t live for the sake of his expectations alone. She had just one life and needed to muddle through it herself. Her experiences with the League were one set of experiences. Felicity still longed for the life she had left behind and never really started living. If disappointing Father was part of that life experience so be it. 

“Are you going to dine with your old father my dear or are you going to run off to that husband of yours now that you’ve obtained the favour you wanted?” Ra’s says mildly however his tone suggested that he would be upset should Felicity refuse to spend time with him. 

“I’m just going to go and find Oliver to tell him the goods news and then I’ll be back to dine with you tonight. Just like old times at MIT.”

“You are much less startling now without the terrible hair and makeup Felicity.”

“Are you never going to let that go?” Felicity glares at Ra’s playfully. “I go through one phase of teen rebellion and you bring it up over and over again.” 

“Much like your love of mocking my age darling. I do wonder if Al Sah Him has seen photographs of you in those peculiar clothes. I shall summon him to dine with me tomorrow.” Ra’s is suddenly looking five decades younger as he entertains the thought of showing Al Sah Him photos of little Felicity.

“You forget that I can have them wiped in the blink of an eye Father.” There was no way she was going to let Oliver and her father sit down to mock her questionable fashion choices in college. MIT had been a stressful time for her, trying to complete her masters in record time. She may have acted out by expressing herself through clothing a little too creatively. Father really should be a bigger person than to mock her about it constantly. It was so undignified for Ra’s Al Ghul the Demon’s Head to poke fun at his child. Felicity levels him with a petulant look. 

“You forget that I do not rely on technology the way you do my dear. I have all my daughters’ photographs in print in my vault of memorabilia.”

“Frack you’ve got to be kidding me,” Felicity groans knowing that this was all true. Her father would develop each and every picture and have it framed. Somewhere in a vault in Nanda Parbat was a photo of her angry Goth self, glaring sulkily at the camera in one of the many father-daughter photos Ra’s had insisted they take together. Oliver lived for this kind of ammunition against her. He was never going to let her live it down. But maybe he would coo over little Felicity. A smile formed on her face. Oliver would definitely coo over little Felicity.

***

“Father you cannot let Felicity use the Lake House. The Lake House was where you spent time with Mother. You haven’t been back since she passed and now you’re letting your stray menace desecrate the place and disrespect its memories.” Word had reached Talia that Felicity was to travel for a few days to visit the Lake House with Al Sah Him, igniting a fit of fury that saw her storming in to demand an audience with Ra’s. 

“You will not call your sister that,” Ra’s snapped at his eldest daughter, all the amusement and cheer he had felt from seeing Felicity earlier vanishing in an instant. “There was no malice behind Felicity’s request to borrow the Lake House. She merely thinks it is a beautiful place that she wishes to visit with someone she loves.” 

“You’ve made my point for me Father. She does not know what the Lake House means to you, to all of us. She has no respect for you, for the League. She views this as all one big game and your private place with Mother is now to serve as a hotel for her sordid activities with Al Sah Him.” Talia spat the words out, bitterness enveloping every word. She will never forgive Father for robbing her of her rightful place as Heir to the Demon however she blamed the decision solely on Felicity Smoak’s shoulders. 

Had it not been for her Father’s obsession with protecting Felicity he would not have declared Al Sah Him to be Heir to the Demon, robbing Talia of her birthright. This and the arranged marriage had been purely instigated by her Father as a round about way to leave Felicity Smoak everything that was near and dear to him.

Talia had never cared for Felicity whom she found to be irritating talkative and strange when Felicity lived with them in Nanda Parbat. After Felicity was sent away she promptly grew up and transformed into a perky little blonde that everyone deemed charming. It was then that Talia’s mild dislike turned into full-blown loathing. Felicity Smoak not only stole Father’s love, she also charmed Nyssa who weakly succumbed to her sorcery, visiting Felicity in between missions and referring to her as Baby Sister much to Talia’s disgust.

Even Al Sah Him with his reputation and firm stance against the arranged marriage had feebly caved in and was now completely and utterly besotted by Felicity Smoak. The thought of Felicity controlling Al Sah Him from behind the scenes when he ascended to Ra’s, effectively inheriting and ruling over everything that belonged to her was something Talia could not tolerate. This was her, Talia Al Ghul’s birthright. She was not going to lose everything that was rightfully hers.

“Do not be so harsh on your sister,” Ra’s voice interrupts her thoughts. “She is young, exuberant and sheltered. She does not know the significance of the Lake House because I have never told her. And what does it matter? It was a place where I went with the woman I loved the most and now your sister will be going there with the person she loves the most. I can’t think of a more fitting way to pass on the Lake House.”

“She’s not my sister! She’s not your child. Why must you be so blind Father? You are Ra’s Al Ghul and no one could stop you bringing home an amusing young stray who made you laugh. But why must you act like she is your flesh and blood? Why must you assign such importance to her?” Talia was well aware it was not wise to speak against Felicity like this however she had held her tongue for more than twelve years and was beginning to find the situation unbearable. 

“I love all my children Talia. You all have different strengths and weaknesses and I have always tried to treat you fairly. Felicity became my child the day I took her away from that house. I have plans for all of you when I am gone and your sister being the youngest and most unfamiliar with the League was the child I felt I needed to devote more attention to.”

“By passing on the throne to someone else Father?” Talia challenged him. “Tell me why is it best for me that you should rob me of my birthright?”

“It is not a matter of birthright Talia, you are familiar with that. I do not understand where you hold the notion that you are to inherit the position. The position of Ra’s Al Ghul has never been a birthright. My predecessor did not pass the title on to his children.” Ra’s considered himself a patient and generous man. He did not go into the reasons why he felt Talia was not suitable for the position. Had he not needed to ensure Felicity’s well being, the title would have gone to Nyssa but still never Talia whose heart was dark and petty, devoting much of her time and energy to small personal grudges rather than seeing the big picture. 

“Everything you did led me to believe that I was to inherit your title Father. Everything,” Talia ground out angrily, fists clenched, her brown eyes almost glowing with anger. 

“Then you have simply read the wrong cues Talia and perhaps never worthy of the position at all.” Ra’s waves a hand dismissively at his eldest daughter, “If you would like to visit your old Father, I welcome you my child. If you are here merely to air your grievances about your sister I do not care to hear anymore.” 

“You have two real children Father. I wish you would remember that.” Talia gave her father one last resentful glare before storming out. She was done trying to make Father see sense when it came to Felicity Smoak. Talia was going to get back everything that should have been hers.

*** 

“If you hate Felicity so much why don’t you take her out yourself. What’s in it for me?” Laurel narrows her eyes at Talia suspiciously. Talia had come to her offering her the chance of a lifetime. To lead a small team of Talia’s people, effectively ambushing and eliminating Felicity during her honeymoon with Ollie. However Laurel was not above using the situation to her advantage. Talia did not need to know she also wanted Felicity gone as much as Talia did.

“Do not pretend with me Laurel Lance your face betrays you. Do you not possess an unrequited obsession for Al Sah Him? Do you pretend that you don’t wish death on that thorn Felicity Smoak as much as I do.”

“Well you got me but why should I stick my neck out and be the one to kill her? Why should I do your dirty work for you?” Laurel had given some idle thought to eliminating Felicity however considering Ra’s’ favouritism towards her, Laurel had been too afraid up until now to give the idea more thought than the occasional idle daydream. 

“Because Felicity Smoak has been inseparable from Al Sah Him, whom you could never take on without my resources. Father also has his little princess under constant surveillance when Al Sah Him is away. This will be your greatest chance, our greatest chance to eliminate Felicity Smoak. I do not believe Father will send any people to watch them on their trip. I furnish the manpower, you furnish the supervision and ensure that Felicity Smoak is killed.” 

Talia neglected to tell Laurel that she had planned to send in a few extra people of her own to eliminate Al Sah Him. He was an unfortunate casualty but Talia was a firm believer in finalizing things completely. Al Sah Him’s death meant that there was one less person to compete for the throne. Goodness knows how her father would react to Felicity’s death and what other erratic decisions he may make. Talia was not taking chances. Laurel was to take the fall for both their deaths. A murderous spree from a woman scorned.

“No one is to ever find out I had anything to do with this,” Laurel demands, grinning and holding out her hand. 

“No one will ever know either of us had anything to do with this,” Talia lied, smiling a cold dead smile that did not reach her eyes as she shook Laurel’s hand. Empires were not built without a few casualties and this was her chance to secure her empire. 

***

“Oliver let me help you carry something,” Felicity protests once again trying to reach for one of the backpacks he was carrying. They had declined Ra’s’ offer of an entourage and had made their way to the Lake House themselves, hiking through the woods and shrubbery. Felicity who had never been fond of walking found she did not mind so much when traipsing around with Oliver who had thoughtfully bought her pair of very comfortable bright pink sneakers after laughing and mocking her adorable pearl buttoned pair, claiming they were fake sneakers made for looking cute rather than walking. Felicity had been suitably disgruntled but the pair Oliver selected for her were cute and felt like little clouds on her feet. After trekking for many miles there was still not threat of a single blister forming.

“Felicity if you gave up trying to snatch our luggage from me at random intervals we will get there faster. I don’t even want to think about how many pounds I have over you. I’m not letting you carry anything as long as we’re walking.” 

He makes a dive for Felicity; his super fast reflexes working before she had anytime to react and scoops her up neatly into his arms. “I can even carry you all the way there, as well as our luggage.”

“Shameless show off,” Felicity swats him playfully on the arm but finds herself unable to resist giving his biceps a squeeze. Oliver really was the stuff romance novels were built on. She hums to herself before remembering that she’s adding to his load and tries to hop out of his arms. Oliver not wanting to let go, muscles her into submission. 

“Put me down, you’re going to pull something before we get there.” He really was just showing off now and Felicity did not want anything to go awry before they got to their destination. She needed him in tiptop form so she could act out her deserted cabin fantasies with him. Well it wasn’t a cabin but Hot Assassin kidnaps helpless girl and has his wicked way with her in a house by the lake was close enough.

*** 

They were still mid banter when Oliver suddenly places Felicity on her feet, yanking her behind him suddenly.

“Felicity run and find somewhere to hide,” he whispers to her and for the first time since knowing him she sees fear in his eyes. He quickly discards their luggage and draws out the miniature bow she had designed for him, quickly enlarging it. He really wasn’t kidding when he told her he loved that thing and took it everywhere with him. 

The next few seconds were a blur and Felicity could barely process what was happening around her. She could only react out of pure instinct, something that was working better since Oliver started training her in self defence. As Felicity grabbed the closest weapon she could find (which in this case was a sword Oliver had packed, no doubt so he could continue to show off his shirtless sword skills around her), she was acutely aware that Oliver was firing arrows, taking out a bunch of armed assassins who oddly enough seemed to be gunning for her instead of Oliver. 

Felicity didn’t give anything much thought after that. She swung Oliver’s sword and slashed at anyone clad in black that came near her. Oliver’s tips, combined with the numerous hours of watching him swinging that thing shirtless proved to be effective as she found herself maiming quite a few of her attackers.

A flurry of arrows emerged from seemingly nowhere, incapacitating and killing their attackers, arrows that weren’t fired by Oliver but instead came from some nearby trees. Oliver sought Felicity’s hand as soon as he finished killing the last assassin. “Felicity we have to get out of here. I don’t know who shot at those assassins but we can’t stay here like sitting ducks.”

Felicity nods and grips onto his hands when out of the corner of her eye she spies an arrow. This was coming from a different direction to the ones that had killed their assailants and was aimed straight for Oliver. Unable to think clearly Felicity did the only thing she felt she could do. She dives in front of Oliver, pressing her body against his and pushes them both forward using all her body weight. 

The arrow misses them both, just narrowly grazing the top of her jacket encased shoulder and the next thing Felicity knew, they were both hurtling down the edge of a cliff with her hands still gripping onto Oliver’s.

*** 

“Felicity you have to let go. There is no way you can support my body weight once the rock beneath me starts to crumble. You’ve got to let me go Felicity,” Oliver shouts at her. 

“Never!” Felicity yells back at him defiantly, gripping onto his hands even harder. They might die but they weren’t going to be separated. “If we’re going down, we will go down together. What good will it do me to let you fall to your death only for me to fall behind you a few minutes later. I don’t want to be a friendless ghost.”

“Felicity if you let go of me you can use your hands and haul yourself up using that tree trunk. The trunk is not going to support both our weights but it will support your weight. Please Felicity. Please let go.”

“How many times do I need to tell you NO you dumb pine tree,” Felicity squawks at him. “And if you dare to pull your hands away I’ll curse you for the rest of this life and possibly the next as well.” 

“Felicity please,” Oliver begs. “Save yourself, go back to your Father, use the token and get away from Nanda Parbat forever.”

“I’m too young to be your widow,” Felicity retorts huffily. “You have to come back with me. I refuse to be a widow, token or no token.”

It was nothing short of a miracle that they were still here, bickering back and forth while dangling precariously off the side of the cliff. Their full speed descent had been halted, when an old tree trunk protruding on the side of the rock face snagged the collar of Felicity’s leather jacket. She was still clinging onto Oliver’s hands as she dangled precariously from the trunk. Meanwhile Oliver managed to scramble and found a crumbling rock platform to temporarily support his weight, a rock platform that was fast disintegrating and due to shatter at any moment. The moment the platform broke Oliver knew his weight would be too much for Felicity to support and both of them plummeting down the side of cliff was a forgone conclusion, hence his desperation for Felicity to let go of him.

“Felicity honey please. Someone once told me that the essence of heroism is to die so that others can live. I don’t care what happens to me as long as you’re out there somewhere safe and happy.”

“Well I care!” Felicity screeches at him. As if dangling by her collar wasn’t already stressful enough, the last thing she needed was to try and talk Oliver out of being self-sacrificing while she was battling her fear of heights. “Whoever told you that is a dumbass! You can’t just accept your fate no matter how bad things look. If I accepted my fate I would have never asked Father to send me away. I would have been stuck here for the last twelve years roaming the halls of his lavish palace.”

Felicity’s tone softens slightly but her voice remains clear and firm. “I cannot accept letting you go to save myself Oliver. How am I supposed to be happy knowing that you gave up your life for me? We will dangle here and find another way. We’ll have to do it quickly and efficiently but we will find another way.”

She looks down, finds his eyes and gives him a reassuring smile, despite wanting to pass out when she realized how far the falling distance would be. Oliver nods at her and Felicity could make out a small flicker of hope in his eyes. Good, he was out of self-sacrificing mode at least for now. 

“Felicity I lo…….”

“Don’t say it,” Felicity interrupts him. “Don’t you dare say it right now.” 

“But I…”

“I do want to hear it Oliver but only when we’re back on solid ground.” 

“Guess I better think of something then,” Oliver grunts, shuffling ever so slightly to gauge just how crumbly the rock platform supporting his feet was. 

“Oliver I did some research before we set off. I was looking for waterfalls,” she blushes slightly at this confession and despite their predicament Oliver can’t help smirking at her. 

“We’re about three miles from Father’s Lake House which means I know vaguely where we are. There’s a good chance it’s just water beneath us and not rocks. If we can somehow push ourselves out so that we land in the water and don’t hit any rocks on the side on the way down, we might just make it.” 

“You let go of me then and try to climb back up. I can fall into the water.” Oliver had no intention of defying Felicity, but it didn’t mean he wasn’t gong to make one last attempt to ensure her safety.

“Nice try Oliver but I don’t want us to be separated. Plus there might be more assassins waiting up there. How do you know they aren’t waiting to skewer me if I climb back up?” Felicity retorts triumphantly, pleased that she was able to best him on reasoning. Well as triumphant as one could sound while one’s life was in peril. 

Oliver grunts and shakes his head, suppressing an amused smile. “Felicity when I say let go you have to let go ok. I’m not going to leave you but I need you to let go so I can get to you. Do you understand?” 

Felicity nods, trusting that this wasn’t a ruse from Oliver to try and sacrifice himself for her. She was confident she’d put enough fear in him for him to avoid pulling a trick like that.

“Let go!” Oliver shouts and immediately Felicity lets go. Oliver deftly kicks the side of the cliff to gain enough momentum to launch himself upwards. As he pushes himself upwards, defying gravity, Oliver manages to grab onto the tree trunk that Felicity’s collar is caught on. The trunk lets out a groan and droops by a few inches. 

“Felicity hold onto me tight,” he orders climbing closer to her, trying his best not to disturb the trunk’s rotting roots. Felicity wordlessly reaches out and clings onto his torso like a baby monkey, wrapping her legs around him. 

“I used to imagine you saying that under different circumstances,” she sighs.

“Non platonic circumstances I’m guessing,” Oliver replies with a straight face despite part of him wondering how on earth he is able to banter in a situation like this. It was the Felicity effect he told himself.

Quickly he unhooks the fabric of her collar from the branch as Felicity continues to monkey cling to him, burying her face into his chest. “You’re really sweaty,” she observes with a salacious smile on her face and it’s the last expression Oliver registers before he pushes off from the side of the cliff with all his might, his arms winding tightly around Felicity as they free fall towards the water below.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> RELAX everyone! They will be FINE! I promise they will not even get a scratch! 
> 
> All shall be well! This is first and foremost a comedy and I have zero intention of changing genre in the last chapter!
> 
> Random story: I watched a series once, hilarious comedy and then during the last 3 episodes the male lead developed a deadly disease and died!!!!! Seriously!!! WTF!!!!! 
> 
> So no, nothing like that will be happening here! Comedy and happy all the way!


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Halloooooooo
> 
> I've finally finished!!!!!!!! YAY!!!!!!!!! Brace yourselves for a very long chapter!
> 
> I do hope you guys enjoy it!
> 
> ***
> 
> I have to credit my 5yo son for the tone of this story. We were chatting about my writing and he questioned why I always wrote about a boy and a girl who loved each other but were always sad due to so many misunderstandings. 
> 
> "Why can't they just be happy and work together to save chickens from being eaten Mummy" he asked me.
> 
> hehe well there are no chickens to save in this story but I decided to take on his words and write a story where the OTP communicate well with each other and do not have any major misunderstandings or dramas between them, just adventure. 
> 
> I really hope I've achieved my goal.

“My Lord, Maseo wishes to see you urgently.”

The words take Ra’s by complete surprise causing him to drop Melisande’s necklace, which crashes, onto the marbled floor. He had taken the precious item belonging to his late wife (Nyssa and Talia’s mother) out with the intention of passing it onto Talia, in an attempt to broker some peace from her in regards to Felicity. Perhaps he had been too harsh with her earlier. Ra’s knew he had to do something to curb Talia’s animosity towards Felicity. 

He had to be careful how he approached this, that much he knew. Everything he did, everything he said in regards to Felicity was always picked apart by Talia as further ammunition to fuel her hatred towards her sister. 

“Send him in right away,” Ra’s all but shouted at the guard. It couldn’t be. This was not what he expected. There was only one reason why Maseo wanted to see him. Ra’s had not expected to hear from his very competent general at all. If Maseo was here to see him it can only mean one thing. Something had happened to Felicity.

Ra’s did not know what powers possessed him to send Maseo to keep watch on Felicity. She was with Al Sah Him and logic dictated she should be as safe as if she were standing next to Ra’s himself. Yet something, call it parental intuition had compelled him to send Maseo to watch over them. An uncomfortable thought had crossed his mind that perhaps old habits were hard to get rid of. He was once again having trouble letting go of his little girl and found it almost soothing to have someone watch over her just like old times. What he never expected was for Maseo to have anything to report back to him. The man was to merely keep watch at a respectable distance and ensure that his daughter returned safely from her trip. He had sent hundreds of men out in the same capacity over the years and had never once been subject to the terror of anyone reporting back to him. 

Ra’s slumped on his throne as the reserved warrior entered his throne room noiselessly. 

“Felicity,” Ra’s says weakly before the other man has a chance to speak. “Has something happened to my Felicity?” 

“She is alive and well My Lord,” Maseo assures him at once. “Al Sah Him took her to the Lake House, fed her some herbs and she is currently expected to wake up anytime now. I have instructed Tatsu to keep an eye on things in my place.”

“My…Felicity…Felicity is unconscious?” Ra’s asks the question to no one in particular, staring around the room looking lost and. It was as if suddenly all his years of unnatural life had caught up with him.

“She is expected to wake up at any moment My Lord. Her pulse is normal; there are no visible injuries. We suspect she suffered from a bit of shock. Al Sah Him fed her some herbs, which induced her to sleep so that her body has time to rest and heal. Please do not be alarmed My Lord.”

“Tell me what happened to my daughter,” Ra’s commands, the notion of Felicity making a full recovery finally sinking in. Now he just wanted to know how his daughter got to the state she was in. 

“They were ambushed on the way to the Lake House. It would appear that the assassins were gunning for Miss Felicity. Al Sah Him took out most of them. I did what I could to assist from my vantage point however there was another party to the attack, someone who wished to take out Al Sah Him. Miss Felicity saved him from a target arrow and as a result they both fell down the cliff.”

“My daughter fell off a cliff?” Ra’s who had temporarily gotten up, slumped back onto his chair. This was the embodiment of every nightmare; everything he had ever feared would happen to Felicity. He had brought her back here to try and prevent this and yet here it was all coming true. A decade of living away from him and not a hair had been plucked off her head but now in Nanda Parbat, under his protection, Felicity had been attacked and tossed off a cliff. “I must find out who is responsible for this attack and make them pay. You must get onto this at once Maseo. RIGHT NOW.”

“My Lord,” Maseo shifts uncomfortably in a rare display of emotion. “My Lord about the culprits behind the attack…” 

“Do not waste another minute Maseo. Do not tell me they are too far away to track. I want you to use all the assassins who are currently on the premises and have them turn Nanda Parbat upside down until I find out who tried to hurt my daughter.”

“My Lord I pursued the culprit who fired the stray arrow at Al Sah Him right away and now have them in custody. Al Sah Him and Miss Felicity managed to take down and injure all their attackers and upon revisiting the scene where the attack took place I was able to apprehend the other offender as well.” 

“Maseo kindly refrain from beating around the bush and inform me who has the audacity to try and kill my child,” Ra’s snaps impatiently.

“My Lord I’m afraid this is not what you will like to hear,” Maseo answers with a look of what could be construed as sympathy on his face.

One look at Maseo’s face and Ra’s straight away knew who the culprit was that wanted to kill Felicity. Talia. She’d finally crossed that line he was hoping she wouldn’t dare cross.

“Who is the other culprit?” Ra’s asks in an eerily quiet voice. 

“Laurel Lance,” Maseo responds in a neutral tone. “She was injured. Slashed with a sword wielded by Miss Felicity during the attack. She’s admitted to colluding with Miss Talia to kill Miss Felicity. It appears from the information I’ve gathered that it was Laurel Lance’s job to have Miss Felicity assassinated however unbeknownst to her Miss Talia also had her own plans to kill Al Sah Him.” 

“This reads like classic Talia. Embark on the simplest solution to procure anything she wants and leave a trail of bodies in her wake.” Ra’s shakes his head, half in sadness, the other in anger, wondering what part he himself unwittingly played in this. 

“My Lord how do you wish to handle this matter?” Maseo asks Ra’s quietly. Their relationship may be one of Lord and servant, however Ra’s could hear sympathy in the other man’s voice.

“I must go and see for myself that Felicity is unharmed. Keep Talia and Laurel locked up. No one is to see them until my return. Under no circumstances are they to be let out of their cells do you understand?” 

“I will heed your orders My Lord,” Maseo assures him. 

Ra’s waves a hand to dismiss Maseo and closes his eyes as the other man noiselessly exits the room. All was not lost. Felicity was alive and well by all accounts and he still had Nyssa.

***

Felicity opens her eyes expecting to feel a few aches and pains from their adventure down the cliff. Nothing. She doesn’t even wince. She’s neither tired nor weary. In fact she’s feeling incredibly well rested and in peak condition which is strange since she remembers clinging onto Oliver’s muscular torso, his reassuring arms wrapped around her as they plummeted into the cold water below. 

Yet here she was in this fluffy bed, surrounded by a good number of plump pillows. Gingerly Felicity lifts her right arm up, followed by her left arm. Not a mark on them. Her pristine milky white skin was without blemish. Not a single tell tale bruise to mark her tussle with the assassins sent to kill them. 

Felicity slowly pulls the covers away to find herself in a soft butter yellow silk negligee with no underwear on. Not only was she not injured or bruised; she was dressed beautifully in expensive sleepwear. 

“Felicity.” Oliver’s voice calls softly as he emerges from seemingly out of nowhere, handsome as ever, his blue eyes shining vividly at her. He was in…pajamas. League of Assassin pajamas with fancy buttons it looked like. Suddenly he was kneeling beside her with a bright smile on his face.

Oliver in weird garb, her waking up without any aches, pains or injuries. There was only one conclusion to this. They must be dead. Felicity glances around the room. The surroundings were soft and simple but luxurious. Much like how she envisaged Father’s Lake House to be. They must be dead and trapped in some kind of dreamlike state emulating their intended final hours.

“Felicity,” Oliver’s voice calls out to her again and he’s reaching out to touch her cheek, his hand warm and comforting, not dead feeling at all. Well wherever she was at least she was with Oliver. Were they trapped in this house for all of eternity or was there like a whole spiritual world out there she found herself wondering.

“Felicity,” Oliver smiles at her again, cupping her cheeks and pressing his forehead against hers. 

“Oliver,” Felicity breathes out his name and pulls him onto the bed. She needed to kiss him to find out how real this mirage could be. As their lips collide and her tongue slides into his mouth, Felicity can’t help but at marvel how strong his arms feel around her and how hard his cock is pressed against her. Apparently even spiritual Oliver had a permanent hard on for her. How marvellously consistent all the Olivers were whether they were dead or alive she thought gleefully as she pushes him back onto the pillows, pulling down his pants aggressively, allowing his rigid cock to spring free. It crosses her mind how pornographic the spirit world could be.

Felicity rubs her wet core against the head of Oliver’s cock and is about to slide home when he grabs her by the arms gently and stills her.

“Felicity honey, not that I don’t welcome your passion after just waking up but are you sure you shouldn’t take it easy for a bit?” he groans, desperately fighting his arousal for her. 

“Why do we need to take it easy? We’re dead Oliver. We have a limitless amount of time to do nothing but fuck all day and night in this world,” she whispers, kissing his chin as she tries to grind against him again. 

“Felicity,” Oliver sits up suddenly, his still hard cock rubbing against her core, causing her to let out a moan. “Felicity it looks like you’re still under the influence of the herbs baby.” 

“Herbs?” Felicity tilts her head and stares at him with an amused smile on her face. “What herbs? We’re dead.” 

“Oh honey,” Oliver smiles at her adoringly and gently slides her off him. “Felicity we’re not dead. Very much alive. I dragged you out of the water, brought you here and fed you some herbs to help you sleep and heal. You’re obviously under the influence of those herbs baby. That’s why you think we’re dead and you’re all loopy.” Oliver kisses her on the forehead. Felicity pouts in response. Obviously he wasn’t going to do anything with her now that she was apparently not dead just high as a kite. Curse the man and his morals. 

“So I’m just drugged up?” Felicity asks frowning a little even though the face she makes feels unnatural. She doesn’t feel like frowning. She just wants to go back to having sex with Oliver really. 

“I’m sorry baby I forgot how strong those herbs would be for someone like you.” Oliver pulls her into his chest for a hug and kisses the top of her head. “You lie here and you’ll feel more like yourself in a bit.” 

“Oh no you don’t!” Felicity protests, scrambling up. “I was squeaky clean during all my best years, didn’t even get away with anything during my Goth phase, apart from an unfortunate encounter with a nut ladened pot brownie. If you have accidentally made me high on these so called herbs I am getting my money’s worth on them.” She crawls on top of him again this time yanking the buttons of his fancy League pajamas and trying to pull the garment off his body.

“Felicity,” Oliver protests. “I don’t think we should…”

Felicity shuts him up with a rough kiss before placing a finger on his lips. “Life experiences Oliver, let me have this.” 

Oliver knows better than to fight Felicity on this one. He smiles at her indulgently as he shakes his shirt off. Felicity squeals in delight and begins rubbing her wet core up and down his cock, gliding along his length, up and down, before finally lining the tip of his cock at her entrance. Felicity lets out a satisfied groan as she pushes down, burying him inside her. 

“Fuck me Oliver,” she commands handing over the reigns to him. Wordlessly Oliver flips her onto her back and begins to pound into her with a pace that makes her senses spin.

***

“So you’re convinced that we’re dead but the first thing you want to do is have sex with me,” Oliver laughs and gives Felicity’s butt a playful smack as he cuddles her in his arms. They should have commenced heading back to the palace now that Felicity had woken up, to begin the arduous investigation into who launched the attack against them. Yet somehow they could not resist this time alone. Here they were free for the first time in their lives. There was no Palace, no League, and no fellow assassins lurking around every corridor in every room. Here they could just pretend it was just the two of them forever in this world. 

“Well the very first thing I did was celebrated internally that I died with you and at least we had each other.” Felicity looks thoughtful before casually shrugging her shoulders, “Then I thought since we were dead and have an eternity together, may as well start the sexing and do it all the different ways while we live out our time in the heavenly world.”

“So let me get this straight Felicity, your idea of Heaven is to fuck me repeatedly.” Oliver chuckles at her but feels a blush rise in his cheeks. For all of his wild youth, Felicity somehow still manages to make him feel bashful and he didn’t even know why. She was always so unexpected. 

“In my defence I was high on those herbs you fed me. I honestly thought we were both dead and I was so relieved we were together. I needed to know how tangible the after world was. I wanted to touch you, to feel you. You know, have death affirming sex.” 

Only in Felicity’s world was there such a thing as death affirming sex. Oliver gazes at her, a smitten helpless grin blooms across his face. They had to come crashing back to reality soon enough but when they did there was no way he was going to lose this woman. Living without her was unfathomable and if she would have him Oliver would do anything to be with her. 

Oliver clears his throat, as he gazes at her in wonderment. “Felicity, before we jumped off the side of the cliff I wanted to say something and you said you wanted to hear it but only when we were back on solid ground.” 

“I believe I did,” Felicity smiles at him encouragingly. The token, the one year agreement, none of that mattered anymore right at this moment. Right now she just wanted to be with him. They would work something out and find a way later. Right now she wanted to hear the words from him. “I still want to hear them Oliver.” 

“Felicity I loov…” 

“FELICITY! Felicity darling I’ve arrived to escort you home. Al Sah Him is my daughter awake?” Ra’s voice booms through and cuts Oliver off mid sentence. 

“Father,” 

“Ra’s,” 

They both chorus in unison as they stare at each other in dismay at having their moment interrupted by the very man who had brought them together. 

“Father I’m awake. Hold on Father. Wait for me to open the door.” Felicity climbs across Oliver and is about to hop off the bed when he pulls her back by the leg frantically. 

“Oliver I know we’ve had fun play acting a few unique scenarios but doing it while my Father is outside is NOT an option,” Felicity whispers at him furiously. 

“WHAT,” Oliver’s voice registers two octaves higher than it usually was. “You think that I want to…with Ra’s outside…Fe-li-ci-ty!!!!!”

“Well why you grab me so heatedly then?” Felicity questions him, hands on hips.

“How on earth was that heated?” Oliver cries indignantly. “That was sheer panic! You have no clothes on! You can’t open the door with no clothes on! I have no clothes on!”

“Whoops my bad,” Felicity grins at Oliver sheepishly.

“My good children it has come to my attention that you are not injured. I will go for a stroll in the garden now. Please fetch me when you have finished engaging in…conversation.” Ra’s sounds mildly distressed and as soon as he finishes his sentence they could hear the sound of shuffling feet. Ra’s and his minions were scrambling away from auditory distance of the property quick smart.

“Poor Father,” Felicity laughs with an evil glint in her eye. “In his mind I will always be nine with a great love for computer parts.” She sidles up to Oliver and wraps her hands around his neck, rubbing her breasts against him. “Now I have a great love for your man parts.” 

“Felicity,” Oliver growls at her sternly but bends down to kiss her anyway. 

***

“Baby Sister I beg you to do this for me. You’re the only one who can get Father to change his mind,” Nyssa pleads.

As soon as she had set foot back in the palace, Felicity found Nyssa waiting outside her chambers, pacing up and down frantically; seeking her help in convincing Ra’s to spare Laurel whose termination Ra’s had ordered to take place in five days. “My beloved will be devastated if anything were to happen to her sister. Please Baby Sister I beg you to do this for me.” 

“Nyssa do you realize how furious Father is? He’s stripped Talia of her all titles and placed her in exile. The only thing that’s preventing him from ordering her death is the fact that she’s his daughter. Laurel is just another assassin to him. One that tried to kill someone he loves behind his back. I don’t think even I can get him to back down on this Nyssa.” Whilst Felicity had been feeling uneasy about Laurel’s death sentence, the woman did try to kill her. Fronting up to try and convince Father to spare her was not something Felicity wanted to face right at this moment.

“He’s furious because it’s you. And yes I realize I have no right to ask you to help someone who tried to kill you. But Felicity I love Sara as much as Al Sah Him loves you and I cannot stand by and watch my beloved suffer as her only living connection dies. Please Baby Sister. You’ve always had this light in you and a loving heart that I have mocked many times. I plead with you to use that heart and assist me just this once.” 

Sensing Felicity’s turmoil, Oliver drapes his arms around her shoulders protectively and rests his chin on her hair. “You’re asking Felicity to BEG for the life of the woman who tried to kill her Nyssa. You’re asking her to uphold a standard that you, that any of us would have trouble adhering to right after she’s just survived a traumatic event.”

“I understand what I am asking my sister Al Sah Him,” Nyssa responds coldly before turning her attention back to Felicity again.

She kneels down abruptly and grabs Felicity’s hands; the haughty look on her face, which had been present a few moments ago, when she addressed Oliver, was no longer present. 

“Felicity Smoak I have always considered you my Baby Sister and have always held you in the highest regard and affection. I dislike using our sisterly bond to coerce you into helping me but if there is one thing that I can appeal from you it would be to help me this time. I will forever be in your debt Baby Sister, no matter where life takes me.

“Oh Nyssa,” Felicity sighs sadly, gently nudging at Oliver to let go of her. He understands the message and kisses her shoulder softly before unwinding his arms, which had been enveloping her.

As Felicity watches Nyssa, a woman who always holds herself together with much aplomb, kneel in front of her, a rush of old memories flood her mind. There were the awkward pats from a slightly older Nyssa in an attempt to comfort her when she was seven, the intimidating visits to Felicity’s boarding school where a terrifying Nyssa had once pulled a dagger on a bully Felicity was dealing with and later when they grew up, the numerous awkward visits at MIT where they possibly had some of the stiffest and most uncomfortable exchanges ever. She remembered the woman who had tried to give her a dagger to protect herself from Oliver, the woman who had stoically help her set up the trap for Oliver despite finding the whole thing ridiculous. They were sisters, they always have been and she couldn’t, didn’t want to let Nyssa down.

“I can’t promise anything Nyssa but I will try. Not tonight because I know Father. He is still upset and high strung by what happened to me. He will just get angry if I go and see him right now. What he needs is enough time to see me happy and healthy, flitting around him like my normal self. That is more likely to soften his stance on the death sentence.” 

Nyssa, still kneeling, drops her head low. “I will forever be indebted to you Felicity Smoak.” 

***

“You ok?” Oliver asks as he kisses Felicity’s cheeks softly. He was sitting in one of the large, gilded armchairs in their living room with Felicity plastered on his lap.

“I am,” Felicity answers. “I don’t know how or why but I’m ok.”

“It wasn’t fair what she asked you to do and you shouldn’t have to do it,” Oliver says placing another kiss, this time on her chin.

“I just feel like after everything that’s happened, I’ve been fortunate. We both made it out of an assassination attempt and cliff jump without injuries. I have you in my life. I guess it’s hard to hold onto a grudge when there are so many things to be thankful for.” 

“Oh it’s more than a grudge,” Oliver grumbles into her shoulder. 

“Let’s not talk about that,” Felicity says with a smile. “I just want to go back into our little bubble again like those precious few hours we had at the Lake House.” 

“We need another vacation,” Oliver smiles, his mood lightening as soon as he casts his mind to focus on Felicity and Felicity only. 

“Somewhere without assassins, annoying vengeful adopted sisters and over protective fathers,” Felicity agrees with a dreamy look on her face. 

“Bali,” Oliver suggests. “I was in Bali for 48 hours once. Beautiful place. I would love to explore it properly with you.” 

“That’s a promise Mister. Bali together,” Felicity rubs her nose against his, her eyes close and she’s about to move in for a kiss when Oliver pulls his face away. She lets out a disappointed whine until she opens her eyes and sees him gazing at her, his eyes full of love and enchantment. Oliver was looking at her like she’d reversed global warming and found a way to make plastic vanish.

“Felicity about what I was going to say earlier,” Oliver’s arms tighten around her as he continues.

“When I gave you the Golden Token I asked you to wait a year before you used it. I wanted a year to prove myself to you, to show you how happy I could make you. But what I’ve come to realize is that I would do anything for you. If you want to fly, I’ll give you the skies. If you want to run, I’ll give you the fields. I love you so much Felicity, more than anything in this life, so how can I place conditions on you. I want you to do whatever your heart desires and I want you to know that I will always find a way to be in your life. If you’ll have me, I’ll do anything to be with you. I can come to you in Star City or wherever you want to settle. I’ll beg Ra’s to let me relocate near you. I’ll…” 

Felicity cuts him off with a heady kiss. “You’re babbling Oliver,” she laughs. “I’m usually the one who speaks in sentence fragments.” She kisses him again, this time her kiss is softer, sweeter and filled with so much unspoken promise.

“I cannot even begin to describe the dismay I felt when I was forced to marry you. And then we fought so often and you made me so angry and frustrated but at the same time it was so much fun even though I would have never admitted it. These last few months have been everything. They’ve been the adventure I’ve craved my whole life. I feel like I’ve truly started living in all the time we’ve spent together. Knowing you has changed my life. You’ve opened my heart in a way I didn’t know was possible. I love you. I want nothing more than to spend the rest of my life with you. I’ve been so torn about my decision to one-day leave this place because I couldn’t bear to be away from you and yet I know this is your home, your whole life is here. I couldn’t just ask you to give all this up for me.” 

“My home is wherever you are. I’m not giving anything up Felicity. All I want is to be yours,” Oliver assures her quickly, eager to make things crystal clear. This was not the time for misunderstandings or misgivings. He adored this woman and he needed her to know it.

“But your sister…”

“My sister is stationed in Europe and undergoing intense tutelage. Turns out Thea is really into the assassin thing. Took to it like a duck to water. Plus she’s her own person and we both have our own lives Felicity. My life is with you if you’ll have me. I’m more worried about Ra’s to be honest. We’re bound by marriage but that token only frees one life from the League.” Oliver pulls Felicity closer to him and begins to sway gently. “But I will go see Ra’s and offer anything he wants in exchange for a life with you.” 

“Don’t you dare,” Felicity slaps Oliver’s hand gently. “Leave Father to me. Father I can handle easily. Don’t you go negotiating any terms with him. Knowing Father he might ask for our firstborn to be Heir of the Demon in exchange for your freedom.”

“The man sent Maseo to keep an eye on you during your honeymoon. I think he’s going to have plenty to say about our firstborn regardless. And our second born. And any other kids we have.” 

“You’ve thought about our kids?” Felicity raises an eyebrow at him. “Oliver I just turned 20!”

“One day when you’re ready,” Oliver kisses her neck before adding with a sly grin, “I started picking out names for them the afternoon you accidentally fell into my arms and kissed me.” 

Felicity levels her gaze on Oliver’s face, her brows furrowing slightly. She suspected he was joking but often when it came to these things there was a high probability that maybe he wasn’t.

*** 

“Felicity, just the person I wanted to see,” Ra’s greets Felicity effusively, giving his daughter a big bear hug before scrutinizing her appearance again to look for any signs of injuries despite numerous assurances from several sources that Felicity was completely unharmed. 

“I’m fine Father. Not a single scratch. I feel just as well as I did before. Can you please stop worrying.” It would not do for Father to be all anxious about her again.

“I always worry Felicity. For years I’ve worried about you. I thought by bringing you back here and marrying you off to Al Sah Him I would be able to keep you safe. That you would be safest under my watch and yet you’ve been in the greatest danger of your life here. I thought I’d lost you Felicity. When Maseo asked to see me I thought I’d lost you and what a big mistake I had made in bringing you back here, putting you under the spotlight.” 

“Father as you always like to say, the universe was watching over me and I survived unscathed. Now will you stop agonizing over it? You’re looking at least three decades older today,” Felicity grins at him impudently hoping the crack about his age would bring a smile to his face or at least annoy him enough to knock him off this train of thought. 

Ra’s smiles and shakes his head at her. “You always know how to cheer up your old father, Felicity. Come and sit over here. I have something to tell you my child.” 

Ra’s leads her to a round carved marble table and places a beautifully decorated sugar cookie on her dainty little china plate. He points at the cookie and Felicity obedient takes a bite, noting that it had been frosted with her favourite buttercream instead of fondant.

“I have decided to send you away my child. Both you and Al Sah Him. Perhaps I have made a mistake in forcing you back here but I truly believe that you two are a match made in heaven, bound together in a past life and will continue on in every life thereafter. It is an eternal love that cannot be broken. It will not do to separate you. So I have decided to send you back to that modern world you love so much and Al Sah Him is to accompany you.” 

“Wow Father, that’s…unexpected.” Felicity feels her conflicting emotions dueling in that moment. Intense euphoria that her father was going to casually release Oliver from the League without her even asking, giving them everything they could ever want, verses the astonishment that Ra’s apparently believed her romance with Oliver was one that spanned a couple of lifetimes. Gosh her father could be plain weird sometimes. Felicity briefly wonders if since he’s lived for centuries, whether her father genuinely thought he’d met previous incarnations of them before. He was so invested in their love story. 

“You love Oliver and he loves you very much my dear. I can see it, everyone can see it as clear as day. One must not defy the universe and fight a love like that.” 

“Indeed one must not Father,” Felicity smiles and nods approvingly, trying her hardest to contain an eye roll.

Ra’s was now eyeing her suspiciously trying to ascertain whether Felicity’s comment was genuine or whether she deserved a scolding for being flippant again.

Felicity shoves the remaining cookie into her mouth and grabs his arm affectionately. “I never thought there would be a day when I would say this to you Father but thank you for finding me the love of my life. It did not come about in the best or the most conventional way but I am grateful to you for bringing Oliver into my life.” 

“You do not know how much it frees my heavy heart to hear you say that Felicity. I’m afraid I have failed at least one of my children and the thought of failing you pains me so. I have decreed that Nyssa is to become Heir to the Demon. She will ascend to Ra’s when I retire. You will be safe and happy with Al Sah Him….” His voice trails off and suddenly her father is looking older, tired and so battle weary. 

“Oh Father you have not failed us. You cannot blame yourself for Talia’s actions. She is responsible for her actions and you cannot hold yourself accountable for them. You are not accountable for any of us Father. If I had become an evil mastermind, hell bent on destroying the world’s information systems with my super virus, would it be fair to hold you accountable for sending me to MIT?” 

“Something tells me you have written this super virus you speak of Felicity and may have gotten up to some mischief with it,” Ra’s cracks a small smile at his youngest daughter. 

“I’ve always proclaimed that I love all my daughters equally but I often know that it is a great untruth I have been telling myself. So much so that I stopped in the last few years and started to openly admit that you are my favourite child. I still maintain that I treated you all equally. You are all so different; I went out of my way to give you all different things. Perhaps I should have handled things better so that Talia wouldn’t walk down this path.” Ra’s face is full of regret as he ponders how he could have done things differently.

Felicity, trying her hardest to navigate the minefield that was family, clings onto his arm. After some years she’d been acutely aware that she was his favourite child. She didn’t quite understand why since Nyssa and Talia were both highly successful combative warriors. Warriors Ra’s spent his life recruiting and creating. She was merely this talkative bookish child who had nothing in common with him, yet Felicity could always tell how much he enjoyed her company, her little rants and her brand of snark, despite the fact that it seemed like they spoke a different language to each other most of the time.

“You did your best Father. You saved me because you felt compelled to and bringing a young orphan into your home and loving her like your own child is the most honorable thing any man could do. You sent me away when I asked you to and kept me out of Talia’s radar for years. I know you blame yourself for bringing me back here but realistically I am your child and I would have crossed paths with Talia at some point, probably igniting the same hatred in her. Sometimes there is darkness within a person that they cannot overcome and this was Talia’s own undoing. Leave the past, the _what ifs_ and _should ofs_ behind Father. Reach out to her again when you’re ready and see how you can forge ahead.” 

“When did my little Felicity become so wise?” Ra’s beams at her.

“Well Father I am a certified genius,” Felicity retorts smugly earning her Ra’s’ infamous headshake of disapproval. “Speaking of wise Father I have something to propose to you. You may not like it at first but it makes perfect sense so I beg you to hear me out.” 

“I always let you have your say my child.” 

*** 

“How did it go?” Oliver manifests seemingly out of nowhere to greet her as Felicity exits Ra’s’ office. 

Felicity jumps despite Oliver dropping her off earlier and informing her that he would loiter around to wait for her. He was not taking any chances even with Talia exiled and Laurel still in custody awaiting execution. Although her father didn’t say anything Felicity was pretty sure she had one of his people shadowing her every move as well. She knew better than to protest even though she didn’t like it. If he had sent Maseo to watch her before her assassination attempt, it would now be her lot in life to put up with his almost invisible bodyguards for the rest of her days. Just when she finally thought she was free to live a somewhat normal life. Damn Talia and Laurel.

“You would think I’d be used to you sneaking up on me by now,” Felicity says patting her chest to steady her breathing. “All these ninjas everywhere. I know I’m being watched but it never looks like I’m being watched. I sometimes forget this has been pretty much my entire life.”

“Is everything ok? How was your talk with Ra’s?” Oliver asks again impatiently before putting an arm around her waist, leading her back to the North Wing, to their quarters as quickly as possible. “I’m sorry I scared you.”

Felicity leans into him and doesn’t say another word until they reach the safety of their chambers.

“I’ve fixed it. Father’s agreed to rescind his order to have her executed. Although I’m not sure if the alternative is much better.” Felicity clears her throat and begins to speak in a deep voice, doing an eerily perfect imitation of Ra’s. “I will do as you ask this time Felicity since you have successfully led me to believe this will be in your best interests, however although I can spare Laurel’s life I will not spare her suffering.”

Oliver watches her mimic Ra’s half in awe and half in horror.

Felicity lets out a little cough and resumes speaking in her normal voice. “He’s got an under the table agreement with ARGUS that no one knows about. He’s going to send Laurel to an ARGUS run prison on Lian Yu. Talia is at another ARGUS black site. A woman named Lyla Diggle operates both classified prisons. I thought Father had just sent Talia away and forbid her to come back to Nanda Parbat. Apparently when Father says someone is in exile, it means he’s handed them off to ARGUS to be locked up somewhere off the books. Sara and Nyssa will be told that Laurel is in exile.”

“How did you convince him to spare her life?” Oliver asks curiously. Knowing how over protective of Felicity Ra’s was, Oliver could not think of any reason why Ra’s would not just kill off someone who had hurt his daughter. Especially someone he considered no more important than an ant in the scheme of things. 

“I told him that by letting Laurel live, Nyssa and by extension Sara would owe me for life since they both know that the only reason why Father would agree to it is because of me. This would give me more connections within the League like he’s always wanted. The future Ra’s Al Ghul would owe me one. Father was satisfied with that.”

“And?” Oliver asks, gesturing for her to continue. “What about us? That’s what I’ve been waiting on all morning. Surely you don’t think I give a shit about Laurel and what happens to her, especially after she tried to hurt you.” 

“You want the good news or the bad news?” Felicity teases casually. Oliver’s face falls at the mention of bad news and Felicity feels a pang of guilt for attempting to joke with him about this.

“The good news is Father is sending us away together,” Felicity claps her hands together jovially. “We are to leave Nanda Parbat, go anywhere we want, do anything we want on the condition that I am to contact him at least twice a week.”

“You mean it?” A bright smile flourishes across Oliver’s face as his entire demeanor changes at once. Instead of looking like a kicked puppy, he now looks like a puppy that has just discovered an unsupervised bag of treats. “Why did you say there was bad news?” 

“The bad news is Father honestly, from the bottom of his heart, believes that you and I have been together in every life in the past and were destined to meet again in this life. He won’t admit it outright but I swear I think he believes he’s met our previous life versions before.” Felicity glances around shiftily as if she were expecting Ra’s to eavesdrop on them before adding, “Just between you and me I think it’ll be healthier for him when he retires and gives up his baths in the Lazarus Pit.

“He might have a point you know. There is a lot of magic and traditions within the League. I wouldn’t write off his theory.”

“Oh my goodness! You totally buy into his crazy theory don’t you?” Felicity laughs shaking her head. “Just like you thought the arranged marriage was a good idea.”

“Best Idea Ever,” Oliver beams at Felicity before pulling her in for a kiss. 

“Felicity,” he asks suddenly remembering something important. “If Ra’s is decreeing that we are to leave Nanda Parbat, did you show him the token at all?” 

“Nope I didn’t need to. I’m going to keep it. As a token of our love. Get it? Cuz it’s a token?” she elbows him cheerily as her face lights up with the most precious sunny smile. 

“Too cute for your own good,” Oliver mutters scooping her into his arms, feeling completely overwhelmed by this woman who really was his at last.

***

**3 years later**

“SCPD have been alerted and are due to arrive in 15 minutes, hey that’s a pretty crap response time when you think about it. Tie up their present and leave the scene Green Arrow. Ride home at a safe speed. Overwatch signing out.” 

“Noted. Love you Overwatch,” Oliver answers in his modulated voice. Even though Felicity never switched off comms, she for no discernable reason loved signing out every chance she got.

Felicity never failed to get a thrill out of using their code names. After travelling the world for one and a half years and falling dangerously into the trap of not wanting to ever settle down, Felicity and Oliver had reluctantly dragged themselves back to set up superhero shop in Ivy Town. 

Actually to back track a bit they had initially tried to follow Felicity’s plans of living in Star City while she attempted gainful employment with one of the large technology companies, however two months into the move they realized that Star City, to put it politely, was a hole of a place, riddled with criminals and assorted evil doers like fruit flies in a summer orchard.

Hightailing it out of there quick smart, Felicity decided to set up a small IT consulting business which thrived and was fast accumulating a healthy portfolio of clients. Meanwhile Oliver took to suburban life like a duck to water, making friends with everyone in the neighbourhood (who knew that ex assassins could also love grilling and pot luck parties) and finally in the most surprising twist of all, running a catering business with Laura Hoffman, a well meaning woman with a passion for slow cookers who could talk the hind leg off a cow.   

They were content with their new lives but after a few months they both found themselves missing the League or rather the missions they used to undertake together during their time there.

This led to the establishment of a happy medium and tightly run operation where Oliver ( _who adopted the new moniker of Green Arrow, having been the Arrow in the League for so many years, he felt like adding a splash of colour to his name for a change_ ), aided by Felicity ( _who reluctantly agreed to the code name Overwatch when it was decided that Overlord was simply too evil sounding for their purposes_ ) on comms, commuted a few nights a week to help Star City overcome it’s villain problem, one baddie at a time. 

“Nyssa,” Felicity exclaims in surprise when she picks up the call. Nyssa took after their father with her annoying habit of dropping in unannounced and was not one to call or text for any reason. She simply showed up whenever she wanted to see Felicity. “Why are you calling me?”

“I come bearing some unwanted news Baby Sister,” Nyssa says solemnly. Felicity would be worried if it was anyone else but Nyssa was almost always grave looking so she paid no mind to the other woman’s sombre expression. 

Before Nyssa could continue, Felicity’s tablet chimes and Ra’s’ face appears onscreen, upside down of course because he’s managed to botch up FaceTime yet again.

“Felicity darling,” Ra’s says with a big smile on his face. “I have decided to retire from the League and move to your charming little town.”

“Father has decided to move near you after hearing how wonderful the neighbourhood is from Al Sah Him,” Nyssa informs her seriously, having no idea that their Father was on another line. 

“What?” Felicity splutters in disbelief. “Father is moving where?” She was going to kill Oliver if he had somehow inadvertently put Ra’s up to this through his enthusiasm of everything Ivy Town. She knew nothing good would come from Oliver texting Ra’s on a social level but had said nothing out of respect for whatever unique relationship her husband now had with Ra’s, having graduating from Lord and General to in laws.

“Felicity who are you speaking to darling? I shall let you go soon. It was all Al Sah Him’s idea. I shall be there in six months time after I move out the assassins I have stationed across the street from you and commission for the property to be renovated to my tastes.” 

“This cannot be my life,” Felicity groans in frustration, covering her face before remembering Nyssa was on the other line.

“Thanks for the heads up Nyssa. Any chance you can help talk him out of it?”

“I am afraid there is nothing I can say to convince Father otherwise. You know how Father can be. Enjoy being the most beloved child Baby Sister,” Nyssa says with a hint of smugness before hanging up.

“Felicity it is rather rude of you to ignore me while I am trying to speak to you. Clearly you no longer care for your old father anymore now that you’ve been gallivanting all over the world,” Ra’s complains before proceeding to drone on and on, still upside down on her screen. 

 _Oliver Queen you are in so much trouble_ Felicity thinks to herself as she tunes out Ra’s.

***

“He FaceTimed me, all upside down and he looked so old and sad. And he was very worried about you. So I told him how happy we were and what a nice safe place Ivy Town is and said he should visit. I swear Felicity I NEVER told him to move here. NEVER,” Oliver protests desperately. He was back and didn’t even get the chance to change out of his Green Arrow suit when greeted by a furious Felicity who blamed him for her father’s decision to move across the street.

“Maybe you can talk him out of it?” Oliver suggests looking hopeful but immediately retreats when Felicity casts him a withering glare. 

“The token!!!! Use the token to keep him away! He has to honor the token,” Oliver practically shouts triumphantly looking pleased that he had found a helpful fool proof suggestion.

“I cannot use the token to make him promise not to live near me when he retires. It would crush him. He’s old. He’s stopped using the Lazarus Pit. It might just kill him,” Felicity glares at Oliver ferociously causing him to slink down in her rollabout chair, trying to make himself look as inconspicuous as possible. Her loud voice was taking centre stage next. He just knew it.

“Besides I’m keeping that token as a prop to tell the tale of our relationship to our grandkids one day. I can’t surrender it.” 

Oliver perks up and beams at her like an eager puppy, momentarily forgetting that she was on the war path with him, the words “ _our_ _grandkids one day_ ” taking over everything else on his mind.

“We’re just going to have to deal with it. Just like we deal with all the crap that goes on in Star City. Am I going to go to hell for comparing my father to Star City? I am aren’t I? But Oliver he’s going to renovate or worse he’s going to build some crazy, outlandish structure to call his new home and then we are going to stick out like sore thumbs in the neighbourhood. We will never have any peace again.” Felicity pauses for a second to catch her breath before clutching her face in horror. “Oliver what if the Home Owners Association doesn’t approve of his renovations or builds? He might order their termination!” 

“Shhh Ra’s sounds like he wants to blend in,” Oliver holds her and rubs her back comfortingly. Realising the statement is not completely true he corrects himself, “I mean he’ll try to blend in as much as it is possible for a man like Ra’s to blend in. Which means at the very least he is not going to kill anyone. He knows you won’t stand for it. And the man does love you whatever his faults are.” 

“You have to make it up to me,” Felicity wails burying her face into his chest. There was really nothing she could do about her father now but practical girl that she was, Felicity intended to use this against Oliver for as long as she could. 

“Anything you want baby,” Oliver coos comfortingly. “Anything at all.” 

Felicity perks up and pulls him down by the hood off his Green Arrow suit. “Show me what happens when the Green Arrow rescues a helpless innocent maiden he finds himself being drawn to but cannot have because of his darkness.”

“Yes Ma’m,” Oliver nods obediently before scooping Felicity up and throwing her over his shoulder. “The maiden has been drugged with a powerful aphrodisiac and I need to take her back to my bunker to…um help her work off the drug but I don’t want to sully her innocent self with my brute strength.”

“Sooo much more creative now,” Felicity’s muffled praise can be heard as Oliver carries her over to the mats.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much for reading and for giving this adaptation a chance guys!!! Your comments and kudos have meant so much to me!
> 
> This story was inspired by a very budget Chinese series called The Eternal Love and also inspired by certain scenes from Legend of Fuyao. 
> 
> Here are their theme songs incase you'd like to check it out!
> 
> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s6SxexkzSgs
> 
> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zihwDHR_W7o
> 
> I cannot tell you how many times I listened to these two songs while I was composing chapters in my head. 
> 
> If anyone reading out there has watched either The Eternal Love or Legend of Fuyao and can recognise which bits I "borrowed" from these series I would love to hear from you! Always gives me a thrill!

**Author's Note:**

> For those of you who did read that.......THANK YOU!!!!!! I love you x 1000 and I hope you liked it! *huggles*
> 
> I take great delight in shilling these Chinese adaptations to you!


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